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fry  TO 


DIAGRAM 

OF  THE 

PRIMARY  SECONDARY  &  TERTIARY  COLOURS 


inv*' 


INTERIOR  DECORATOR, 


BEING  THE 

#  ' 

LAWS  OF  HARMONIOUS  COLORING 

ADAPTED  TO 

INTERIOR  DECORATIONS. 


WITH  OBSERVATIONS  ON 


THE  PRACTICE  OF  HOUSE  PAINTING. 


BY 

D.  R.  HAY, 

HOUSE-PAINTER  AND  DECORATOR  TO  THE  QUEEN,  EDINBURGH. 


FIRST  AMERICAN, 

FROM  THE  SIXTH  LONDON  EDITION. 


PHILADELPHIA : 

HENRY  CAREY  BAIRD, 
INDUSTRIAL  PUBLISHER, 

406  Walnut  Street. 

1 86T. 


PHILADELPHIA  : 

COLLINS,  PRINTER,  705  JAYNE  STREET 


PREFACE. 


In  laying  before  the  public  a  sixth  edition  of 
this  treatise,  I  have  to  express  my  gratitude  for 
the  favorable  reception  it  has  hitherto  met  with, 
and  to  assure  my  readers  that  I  have  thereby 
been  stimulated  to  exert  myself  to  the  utmost  to 
render  it,  on  the  present  occasion,  more  theoreti¬ 
cally  and  practically  useful. 

Although  the  colored  diagrams  are  now  re¬ 
duced  to  one,  yet  that  one  contains  all  the  colors 
of  which  the  various  diagrams  in  the  former 
editions  were  composed,  more  correctly  balanced 
as  to  their  relative  powers,  and  more  permanently 
secured  against  change. 

I  have  re-written  the  whole  treatise,  and  have 


It  peeface. 

expunged  all  extraneous  matter  in  order  to  make 
room  for  additions  more  intimately  connected 
with  the  subject.  And  as  a  more  convenient 
arrangement,  I  have  now  divided  it  into  two 
distinct  parts;  the  first  theoretical,  and  the 
second  practical.  Both  of  these  I  have  treated 
as  popularly  as  the  nature  of  the  subject  would 
admit  of,  and,  therefore,  trust  this  edition  will  be 
found  superior  to  any  of  its  predecessors. 

D.  R.  HAY. 


Edinburgh,  90  George  Street. 


CONTENTS 


PART  I. 

PAGE 

Introduction . .  13 

On  the  Theories  op  Color . 29 

On  the  Analogy  Between  Color  and  Sound  .  .  42 

On  Colors  Generally . 53 

Primary  Colors . 53 

Secondary  Colors . 53 

Tertiary  Colors . 54 

Diagram  with  names  of  Colors  and  Hues  .  .  55 

Tints  . . 55 

Shades  . . 55 


On  the  Application  of  the  Laws  of  Harmonious 
Coloring  to  House-Painting  and  Manufactures  62 


On  Colors  Individually . 78 

White . 78 

Yellow  83 

Orange  Color . 88 

Red  90 

Purple . 97 


VI 


CONTENTS. 


PAGE 

Blue  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .99 

Green . 102 

Black . 106 

PART  II. 

ON  THE  PRACTICE  OE  HOUSE  PAINTING. 

On  the  Materials  Employed  in  Plain  Painting  .  109 

White-Lead . Ill 

Litharge . 114 

Sugar-of-Lead . 114 

Red-Lead  and  Orange-Lead  ....  114 

■Chrome-Yellow  .  115 

Ochres . 116 

Terra-di-Siena . 117 

Indian  Red . 118 

Vermilion  . . 118 

Lake . 120 

Colcothar  of  Vitriol . 121 

Venetian  Red,  Light  Red,  and  Spanish  Brown  .  121 

Prussian  Blue . 122 

Factitious  Ultramarine . 123 

Turkey  Umber . 124 

Linseed  Oil . 125 

Spirits  of  Turpentine . 126 

On  the  Methods  of  Executing  Plain  Painting  .  128 

On  the  Materials  Employed  in  Ornamental  Paint¬ 
ing  . . 137 

V andyke  Brown  and  Ivory  Black  .  .  .  137 

Copal  Varnish . 138 


CONTENTS.  Yll 

PAGE 

On  Imitations  of  Woods  and  Marbles  .  .  .  141 

On  the  Various  Modes  of  Decorating  the  Ceilings 
and  Walls  of  Dwelling-Houses  ....  156 

Distemper . 162 

Gilding . .  ...  163 

Paper-Hangings . 167 

Stippled  Flat  Painting  and  Gold  .  .  .  175 

Imitation  of  Gold  Embroidery  .  .  .  .  177 

Decorative  Borders  .  .  '  .  .  .  .178 

Imitation  Damask . 180 

Imitation  Morocco  Leather  .  .  .  .  182 

Notes . 185 

Note  A,  on  the  Analogy  Between  Sound  and 

Color  .  185 

Note  B,  on  Cheap  Painting  .  .  .  .188 

Note  C, — Reminiscences  of  the  Painting  and 

Decorating  of  Abbotsford  ....  191 
Note  D,  on  the  Dwelling-Houses  of  the  Ancients  206 


& 


3?^ 


> 


PART  I. 


INTRODUCTION. 

Although  the  experimental  inquiries  of  the  natu¬ 
ral  philosopher  have  long  since  established  as  a 
scientific  fact,  that  colors  are  regulated  by  the  irre¬ 
fragable  laws  of  harmony  in  their  combinations ; 
and  although  the  works  of  most  of  the  masters  in 
high  art,  both  ancient  and  modern,  give  practical 
illustrations  of  the  same  truth,  yet  the  error  of  con¬ 
sidering  the  arrangement  of  various  colors  as  a 
matter  of  mere  caprice  or  fancy,  is  still  prevalent. 

In  the  decoration  of  our  dwellings,  in  the  colors 
of  our  dress,  in  the  arrangement  “of  our  flower  gar¬ 
dens,  and,  indeed,  in  almost  every  case  where  colors 
are  brought  together  in  the  ordinary  requirements 
of  life,  fashion  more  than  scientific  knowledge, 
seems,  in  a  great  degree,  to  regulate  our  proceed¬ 
ings.  But  the  caprices  of  fashion  are  guided  by  no 
rules  whatever,  but  are  subjects  upon  which  most 
nations  and  individuals  differ  widely;  and  there 
are  no  productions  or  customs  to  which  these 
2 


14 


INTRODUCTION. 


caprices  have  given  rise,  however  extravagant  or 
absurd,  but  what  have  had,  and  still  have,  their 
admirers,  while  they  bear  the  gloss  of  novelty  or 
stamp  of  fashion. 

Fancy  or  choice  is,  and  may  be  employed  with 
perfect  propriety  in  all  matters  of  taste,  both  as  to 
individual  colors  and  their  combinations.  We  are 
all  individually  entitled  to  have  our  likings  for,  and 
antipathies  to  particular  colors,  hues,  shades,  or 
tints.  We  may  also,  individually,  have  our  par¬ 
tiality  to  particular  modes  of  arrangement  amongst 
various  colors, — some  may  delight  in  a  gay  and 
lively  style  of  coloring — some  in  the  rich  and 
powerful,  and  others  in  the  deep  and  grave — some 
may  have  a  partiality  for  complex  arrangements, 
while  others  prefer  extreme  simplicity.  But  this 
is  the  case  in  music  also  ;  every  variety  of  style 
and  composition  has  its  particular  admirers  ;  yet  it 
never  is  assumed,  that  the  arranging  of  the  notes 
in  a  melody,  or  other  musical  composition,  is  a  mat¬ 
ter  of  mere  caprice  or  fashion.  All  know  that  the 
arrangement  of  notes  in  such  cases  is  regulated  by 
fixed  laws  ;  proved  also,  by  the  experimental  in¬ 
quiries  of  the  natural  philosopher,  to  depend  on 
certain  phenomena  in  nature,  which  cannot  be  de¬ 
viated  from  without  giving  offence  to  the  ear ; 
therefore,  a  knowledge  of  those  laws  is  considered 


INTRODUCTION. 


15 


absolutely  requisite  to  every  one  who  wishes  to 
cultivate  that  pleasing  art,  either  practically  or  as 
an  amateur.  This  is  precisely  the  case  in  regard 
to  coloring ;  for  it  does  not  matter  under  what 
circumstances  a  variety  of  colors  are  presented  to 
the  eye — if  they  be  harmoniously  arranged,  the 
effect  will  be  as  agreeable  to  that  organ  as  harmo¬ 
nious  music  is  to  the  ear;  but  if  not  so  arranged, 
the  effect  on  the  eye  must  be  unpleasant,  and  the 
more  cultivated  the  mind  of  the  individual,  the 
more  annoyance  will  such  discordance  occasion 
him. 

The  laws  of  harmonious  coloring  seem  not  only 
to  have  been  thoroughly  understood  by  those  great 
painters  of  antiquity,  whose  works  have  been  the 
admiration  and  study  of  succeeding  age's,  bpt  were 
even  so  far  back  as  amongst  the  early  Egyptians, 
carried  to  the  greatest  perfection  in  the  more  hum¬ 
ble  art  of  the  internal  and  external  chromatic 
decorations  of  architecture.  Those  travellers  who 
have  visited  the  remains  of  the  magnificent  cities 
and  tombs  erected  by  the  wonderful  people,  speak 
of  this  branch  of  art  as  having  been  executed  upon 
an  evidently  regular  sysCem  of  harmony,  which  had 
for  its  basis  the  fundamental  laws,  or  first  princi¬ 
ples,  that  ought  still  to  regulate  the  proceedings  of 
the  colorist,  especially  in  those  branches  of  art 


16 


INTRODUCTION. 


where  high  genius  is  not  required,  and  where  the 
practitioner  must  be  confined  within  the  bounds  of 
teachable  rules. 

The  Romans,  too,  at  the  period  of  their  greatest 
refinement,  seem  to  have  paid  a  due  regard  to  these 
laws  in  the  applying  of  color  to  the  useful  arts,  of 
which  fact  the  remains  of  Pompeii  and  Hercula¬ 
neum  afford  ample  proof.  The  accounts  given  by 
artists  and  amateurs,  of  the  interior  decorations  of 
the  dwelling-houses  of  these  ancient  cities,  all  con¬ 
cur  in  eulogizing  the  scientific  knowledge  which 
their  coloring  displays.  It  appears,  that  the  deco¬ 
rators  of  those  days  used,  upon  all  occasions,  the 
most  brilliant  and  intense  colors,  without  either 
discord  or  crudity  appearing  in  their  works.  But 
their  science  did  not  stop  here,  for,  by  a  knowledge 
of  the  various  styles  of  coloring,  and  of  their  proper 
adaptation,  they  employed  great  masses  of  deep 
color,  even  black  itself,  on  the  walls  of  their  rooms, 
sepecially  such  as  were  lighted  from  the  top,  or, 
rather,  that  were  altogether  uncovered  ;  thus  coun¬ 
teracting  the  brilliant  and  abundant  light  of  the 
Italian  sky.  The  practice  of  scientific  coloring 
seems  still  to  exist  amongst  the  Italians.  An 
eminent  writer  on  the  art  of  painting,  and  an 
amateur  of  the  highest  class,*  who  has  done  much 


*  James  Skene,  Esq.,  of  Rubislaw. 


INTRODUCTION. 


17 


in  an  official  capacity  for  the  encouragement  and 
improvement  of  our  national  manufactures,  thus 
describes  the  practice  of  house-painting  amongst 
the  modern  Italians  : — 

“  In  Italy,  the  study  and  acquirements  of  a  house- 
painter  are  little  inferior  to  what  is  requisite  for  the 
higher  branches  of  the  art ;  and,  in  fact,  the  practice 
of  both  is  not  unfrequently  combined.  They  are 
more  conversant  with  the  science,  as  well  as  the 
practice  of  coloring,  with  the  rules  of  harmony,  and 
with  the  composition  of  ornamental  painting  in  all 
its  branches  ;  so  that  their  works  might  be  trans¬ 
ferred  to  canvas,  and  admired  for  their  excellence. 
In  fact,  the  great  frescoes  of  the  first  masters,  which 
have  been  the  admiration  of  ages,  were  but  part 
of  the  general  embellishment  of  the  churches  and 
palaces  of  Italy.  And  the  most  celebrated  names 
in  the  list  of  artists  have  left  memorials  of  their 
fame  in  the  humble  decorations  of  the  arabesque, 
in  which  all  the  exuberance  and  playfulness  of 
fancy  are  displayed,  as  well  as  the  most  enchanting 
harmony  of  brilliant  colors.  It  is  in  this  essential 
point  of  harmony  that  our  practice  is  particularly 
defective ;  we  rarely  see,  in  the  simple  painting  of 
our  apartments,  any  combination  of  colors  that  is 
not  in  some  part  offensive  against  even  the  com¬ 
mon  rules  of  art,  if  there  are  any  rules  observed, 
2* 


18 


INTRODUCTION. 


save  those  of  mere  caprice  or  chance — although 
there  are  certain  combinations  pointed  out  by  the 
laws  of  optic®,  which  can  as  little  be  made  to 
harmonize  as  two  discordant  notes  in  music.  The 
unpleasant  effects  arising  from  such  erroneous  mix¬ 
tures  and  juxtapositions,  we  are  often  sufficiently 
aware  of,  without  having  the  skill  requisite  to 
assign  the  reason,  any  more  than  the  painter  who 
chose  them.  This  accounts  for  the  prevalent  use 
of  neutral  colors  in  our  ornamental  painting,  which 
is  less  liable  to  offend  by  whatever  bright  color  it 
may  be  relieved,  and  likewise  the  safer  and  more 
agreeable  combination  of  the  different  shades  of 
the  same  indefinite  color.  But  no  sooner  do  our 
painters  attempt  any  combination  of  decided  colors 
than  they  fail.  The  ornamental  painting  in  Italy 
is  almost  entirely  in  decided  colors  of  the  most 
brilliant  hue,  and  yet  always  inexpressibly  pleasing 
'  in  the  combinations,  because  the  rules  of  harmony 
are  known  and  attended  to.  Neither  is  this  pro¬ 
ficiency  confined  to  the  decoration  of  palaces,  pr 
the  more  elaborate  and  expensive  works ;  we  have 
seen  in  dwellings  of  a  much  humbler  cast,  and 
indeed  in  general  practice,  the  most  graceful  de¬ 
signs  of  ornament,  painted,  not  in  the  simple  man¬ 
ner  of  Camayeu,  but  displaying  every  possible  tint 
of  bold  and  vivid  coloring,  and  melting  into  each 


INTRODUCTION. 


19 


other  with  all  the  skill  and  harmony  of  a  piece  of 
brilliant  music.7’ 

Until  very  lately,  white,  neutral  hues,  and  pale 
tints  of  color  only  were  used  in  the  painter’s  de-# 
partment  of  our  internal  decorations, — a  practice 
that  it  is  difficult  at  first  view  to  account  for  in  a 
country  like  this,  where  we  are,  by  a  variable  cli¬ 
mate,  denied  the  study  and  enjoyment  of  nature’s 
coloring  for  so  many  days  in  every  season  of  the 
year ;  and  must,  consequently,  content  ourselves 
writh  what  the  interior  decorations  of  our  dwellings 
afford. 

This  vapid  tameness  in  the  coloring  of  our  dwell¬ 
ings  is  the  more  inexcusable,  when  we  reflect,  that 
as  harmonious  music  delights  and  refines  the  mind 
through  the  ear,  so  does  harmonious  coloring  act 
as  an  agent  of  civilization,  in  delighting  and  refin¬ 
ing  the  mind  through  the  visual  organ.  I  believe, 
however,  that  this  long  banishment  of  the  true 
beauty  of  coloring  from  the  apartments  of  our 
dwelling-houses  had  its  origin,  not  in  any  want  of 
feeling  or  taste  for  coloring  on  our  part,  as  com¬ 
pared  with  our  Continental  neighbors,  but  from 
our  having  lost  the  art  of  applying  colors  har¬ 
moniously,  unless  by  the  intuitive  feeling  of  genius. 
There  is  an  inherent  principle  in  the  human  mind, 
however  uncultivated  it  may  be,  that  responds  to 


20 


INTRODUCTION, 


harmony — -either  in  color,  sound,  or  form ;  and  as 
silence  is  preferable  to  bad  music,  so  is  neutrality 
to  positive  coloring,  unless  the  latter  be  regulated 
Jby  the  laws  of  harmony,  which  render  it  to  the  eye 
what  music  is  to  the  ear.  This  quality  in  coloring 
is  perfectly  irrespective  of  imitative  art,  for  so  long 
as  the  forms  of  the  individual  colors  are  agreeable 
and  proportionate  to  the  eye,  so  long  will  their 
harmonious  arrangement  convey  as  much  pleasure 
to  the  mind,  through  that  organ,  as  there  is  con¬ 
veyed  to  it  through  the  ear  by  the  proper  perform¬ 
ance  of  a  piece  of  instrumental  music. 

Many  attribute  our  apathy  in  regard  to  rich 
coloring,  to  the  uncongenial  nature  of  the  climate 
of  this  country.  This  cannot  be,  for  in  no  country 
in  the  civilized  world  does  nature  exhibit,  in  the 
revolution  of  a  year,  such  a  splendid  variety  of 
colorific  harmony — in  which  our  snowy  winter  is 
but  a  pause.  This  pause  is  first  interrupted  by  the 
cool  vernal  melody  of  spring,  gradually  leading  the 
eye  to  the  full  rich  tones  of  luxuriant  beautjT  ex¬ 
hibited  in  the  foliage  and  flowers  of  summer,  which 
again  as  gradually  rise  into  the  more  vivid  and 
powerful  harmonies  of  autumnal  coloring,  suc¬ 
ceeded,  often  suddenly,  by  the  pause  of  winter. 
But  how  often,  in  the  depth  of  winter,  when 
the  colorless  snow  clothes  the  face  of  nature, 
do  the  most  glorious  harmonies  of  color  present 


INTRODUCTION. 


21 


themselves  in  the  purple  and  gold  of  a  winter  sky. 
These  picturesque  effects  have  doubtless  contributed 
largely  to  distinguish  the  British  school  of  painting, 
as  a  school  of  color.  The  picturesque  beauty  of. 
nature’s  coloring,  however,  lies  in  the  province  of 
genius  to  imitate  in  works  of  high  art;  for  the 
generality  of  mankind  may  admire  it,  but  cannot 
deduce  from  it  its  first  principles,  in  such  an  intel¬ 
ligible  form,  as  to  found  laws  upon  them  to  govern 
that  species  of  coloring  which  belongs  to  the  more 
humble  arts,  the  improvement  of  which  is  the  chief 
object  of  this  treatise. 

What  I  have  elsewhere  said  in  regard  to  the 
picturesque  beauty  of  nature’s  forms,  I  may  here 
repeat  as  applicable  to  the  no  less  picturesque 
beauty  of  her  coloring;  namely,  that  because  it 
may  afford  the  poet  some  of  the  finest  themes  for 
the  exercise  of  his  genius,  we  do  not  assume  that 
it  also  supplies  that  knowledge  of  language  which 
enables  the  generality  of  mankind  to  read  and  un¬ 
derstand  his  poetry.  Neither  is  the  coloring  of 
nature  to  be  transferred  to  works  of  ornamental 
art,  by  means  of  mere  imitation,  any  more  than 
poetry  can  be  produced  by  its  mere  description. 
The  hand  that  blends  the  tints  and  hues  in  works 
of  imitative  art,  must  be  guided  by  a  mind  so  con¬ 
stituted,  as  to  possess  a  quick  and  keen  perception 


22 


INTRODUCTION. 


of  the  most  subtle  developments  of  the  principles 
of  beauty,  and  deeply  imbued  with  that  faculty 
which  reciprocates  at  once  to  these  developments. 
Such  a  mind-  constitutes  that  species  of*  genius 
which  cannot  be  inculcated  by  any  process  of 
tuition,  and,  therefore,  none  but  those  who  possess 
it  intuitively  are  capable  of  imitating  properly  the 
beauties  of  nature.  To  study  the  beaut}^  of  nature’s 
forms  and  coloring,  is,  doubtless,  one  of  the  most 
delightful  modes  of  employing  the  perceptive  and 
reflective  powers  of  the  mind,  but,  to  attempt  to 
imitate  them  picturesquely,  without  the  qualifica¬ 
tion  of  genius,  is  a  waste  of  labor ;  and  the  adapta¬ 
tion  of  those  defective  imitations,  indiscriminately, 
to  ornamental  purposes,  has  done  more  to  degrade 
high  art  than  any  other  species  of  barbarism. 

For  decorative  purposes,  and  in  their  application 
to  manufactures,  colors  must  be  systematized,  and 
the  elements  of  their  various  modes  of  combina¬ 
tions  thoroughly  understood,  so  that  the  beauty  of 
such  applications  of  colors  could  be  comprehended 
by  the  generality  of  mankind,  as  easily  as  a  simple 
sentence  in  written  language.  But  the  decorator 
and  the  manufacturer  are  too  partial  to  that  species 
of  imitative  art  which  requires  the  light  and  shade 
as  well  as  the  coloring  of  natural  objects.  In  short, 
instead  of  acquiring  a  knowledge  of  the  elementary 


INTRODUCTION. 


23 


laws  of  color  and  form,  in  order  to  apply  them  in 
the  simple  combinations  which  the  humble  arts  of 
house-painting  and  weaving  require,  the  poetry  of 
high  art  is  attempted  ;  and,  those  who  make  the 
attempt  not  being  possessed  of  that  high  genius 
which  can  reach  the  truth  of  the  picturesque  beauty 
of  nature,  the  feelings  are  not  touched,  nor  the 
sympathies  excited  by  such  works.  It  is  really 
astonishing  that  people  of  highly  cultivated  minds, 
who  can  look  with  pleasure  upon  the  delicate  color¬ 
ing  and  exquisite  forms  of  the  real  flowers  to  be 
found  in  most  drawing-rooms,  can  endure,  at  the 
same  time,  the  sight  of  the  wretched  imitation 
flowers  upon  the  paper-hangings  and  carpets,  with 
which  these  apartments  are  often  decorated.  Habit 
does  a  great  deal  in  familiarizing  the  senses  to  im¬ 
pressions  that  would  otherwise  excite  very  disagree¬ 
able  feelings.  A  man  with  a  fine  ear  for  music  may 
get  so  accustomed  to  the  sound  of  sharpening  saws, 
and  the  noise  of  the  tinsmith’s  hammer,  that  in 
course  of  time  they  will  not  much  annoy  him.  So 
many  a  person  of  a  fine  eye  for  color  become  so  ac¬ 
customed  to  the  harsh  and  discordant  coloring  of 
many  of  our  carpets  and  paper-hangings,  as  to  treat 
their  presence  with  indifference. 

Happily,  there  has  of  late  years  been  a  great 
movement  made,  in  this  country,  towards  a  better 


24 


INTRODUCTION. 


knowledge  of  coloring  in  the  useful  arts,  and  espe¬ 
cially  in  the  decoration  of  our  dwelling-houses. 
But  much  remains  to  be  done,  for  there  has  as  yet 
been  little  more  than  mere  agitation,  and  there 
appears  a  great  timidity  on  the  part  of  the  public 
generally,  in  respect  to  departing  from  the  quiet 
neutrality  that  has  so  long  rendered  our  apart¬ 
ments  insipid  and  comfortless  to  the  eye,  and 
adopting  in  its  stead  a  more  full-toned  and  rich 
style  of  coloring. 

To  become  acquainted  with  the  laws  .of  harmo¬ 
nious  coloring — is  neither  a  difficult  nor  an  un¬ 
pleasant  task;  and  as  the  first  principles  upon 
which  they  are  based,  are  identical  with  those 
upon  which  depend  the  harmony  of  sound  and  of 
form,  their  acquirement  would  improve  our  know¬ 
ledge  in  matters  of  taste  generally.  I  may  here 
reiterate  what  I  have  on  other  occasions  stated 
that  in  this  cojmtry  we  are  as  much,  in  want  of 
that  knowledge  which  conduces  towards  a  proper 
appreciation  of  the  correct  and  the  beautiful,  in 
works  of  ornamental  art,  as  we  are  of  operatives 
in  that  particular  branch. 

It  would  appear,  however,  from  the  recent  intro¬ 
duction  into  this  country  of  foreign  artists,  that 
our  appreciation  is  rather  gaining  ground  upon  our 
practice.  But  although  the  number  of  those  inge- 


INTRODUCTION. 


25 


nious  foreigners  were  multiplied  to  one  hundred  for 
each  individual,  it  could  not  supersede  the  neces¬ 
sity  and  utility  of  studying  those  first  principles 
to  which,  whether  applied  intuitively  or  through 
acquired  knowledge,  the  ornamental  works  of  these 
foreigners  owe  whatever  beauty  they  may  possess. 

It  is  not  the  mere  adoption  of  a  more  florid  style 
of  decoration  in  our  public  buildings,  and  in  some 
of  the  mansions  of  the  nobility  of  the  land,  that 
will  Ro  what  is  required  to  be  done  for  this  art. 
Every  man  of  ordinary  education  ought  to  have 
such  a  knowledge  of  the  teachable  laws  of  color¬ 
ing,  as  would  enable  him  to  be  a  judge  of  such 
works,  and  to  distinguish  between  the  affectation 
of  harmony  of  color,  and  its  true  development, 
either  by  intuitive  genius,  or  bj^  the  appiication  of 
those  fixed  principles,  a  knowledge  of  which  may 
be  so  easily  acquired. 

But  our  general  knowledge,  even  of  the  propriety 
necessary  to  be  observed  in  decoration,  is  so  far 
below  the  requisite  standard,  that  the  grossest 
absurdities  are  often  committed.  For  instance,  we 
find  the  most  flimsy  and  fantastical  style  of  orna¬ 
mental  design,  borrowed  at  third  or  fourth  hand 
from  a  building  devoted  to  the  private  luxury  of  an 
ancient  Roman,  adopted  as  a  suitable  stjde  for  the 
interior  of  an  arcade,  remarkable  for  its  plain  sub- 
3 


26 


INTRODUCTION. 


stantial  massiveness,  and  devoted  to  a  species  of 
public  business  of  such  a  grave  nature  as  to  be  of 
vital  importance  to  our  prosperity  and  independ¬ 
ence,  as  one  of  the  nations  of  the  civilized  world. 
It  is  scarcely  possible  to  conceive  a  greater  degree 
of  decorative  incongruity  than  this,  yet  it  has  been 
committed  in  one  of  our  greatest  national  edifices, 
amidst  all  the  agitation  that  exists  in  regard  to 
national  advancement  in  the  art  of  ornamental 
design. 

An  excellent  writer  on  decoration  in  the  Athe- 
nseum ,  No.  840,  p.  1014,  very  justly  observes,  “That 
certain  principles  of  decoration  may  be  laid  down, 
which,  if  recognized  and  applied,  would  make  our 
dwellings  much  more  cheerful  and  comfortable, 
which  might  make  them  comparatively  beautiful, 
not  only  without  any  additional  cost,  but  would 
make  the  keep  of  them  more  economical,  by  ren¬ 
dering  them,  to  an  equal  degree,  independent  of  the 
caprices  of  fashion.  It  is  the  absence  of  correct 
principles  which  causes  decoration  and  furniture  to 
be  out  of  fashion,  tiresome,  palling  to  the  eye,  and 
subject  to  constant  change;  whereas,  what  is  really 
beautiful,  being  based  on  everlasting  principles,  is 
subject  to  no  change.  We  think  the  greater  part 
of  the  painting  of  a  house  might  be  a  work  to  last 
for  a  life,  with  benefit  even  to  the  journeymen 


INTRODUCTION 


27 


painters,  and  infinite  satisfaction  to  the  house  in¬ 
habitant.  A  truly  melancholy  suspension  of  com¬ 
fort  is  the  work  of  painting  a  house.  Your  whole 
little  world  so  turned  upside  down,  that  it  hardly 
rights  itself  before  the  work  has  to  be  done  again. 
What  a  comfort  it  would  be  to  undergo  the  penance 
only  once  in  a  life,  instead  of  every  seven  years ! 

“It  seems  to  us  quite  a  mistake,  though  a  very 

a 

common  and  popular  one,  to  imagine  that  beauty  is 
necessarily  costly  in  its  production.  Nothing  could 
be  cheaper  in  material  and  manufacture  than  the 
earthenware  pots  of  the  ancient  Etrurians ;  yet  they 
have  perfect  and  everlasting  beauty  in  their  forms. 
The  preference  of  one  color  to  another,  within  a 
very  wide  range  of  colors,  is  not  at  all  a  thing  of 
greater  or  lesser  cost.  So  far  from  beauty  being 
costly,  it  would  more  often  happen,  that  in  a  given 
number  of  existing  specimens  of  decoration,  the 
greater  beauty  and  harmony  would  be  obtained  at 
a  smaller  cost  of  labor  and  material,  than  what  are 
expended  to  produce  ugliness  and  confusion.  Take 
at  random  a  dozen  patterns  of  paper-hangings,  of 
various  colors  and  devices,  and  in  the  majoritj^  of 
them,  we  believe  it  could  be  shown  that  their  cost 
of  production  might  be  materially  lessened,  whilst 
their  beauty  would  be  greatly  enhanced.” 

Practical  experience  in  my  profession  has  long 


28 


INTRODUCTION. 


since  convinced  me  of  the  correctness  of  these  ob¬ 
servations,  and  of  the  satisfaction  and  advantage 
arising  to  the  employer  as  well  as  to  the  trades¬ 
man,  by  a  strict  adherence,  on  the  part  of  the 
latter,  to  the  principles  here  indicated. 

I  shall  conclude  this  introduction  by  reiterating 
the  fact — that  it  is  to  the  want  of  an  inculcation  of 
teachable  rules  to  the  mechanic  and  manufacturer, 
as  producers  of  beauty,  and  to  the  public  generally, 
as  appreciators  of  it,  that  we  must  attribute  our 
present  deficiency  in  iEsthetical  Taste. 


ON  THE  THEORIES  OF  COLOR. 


When  I  first  published  this  Treatise  there  ex¬ 
isted  two  theories,  and  I  hesitated  long  which  of 
the  two  to  adopt.  The  one  theory  was  that  estab¬ 
lished  by  Sir  Isaac  Newton,  and  adopted  by  Sir 
David  Brewster,  and  other  philosohical  writers 
on  chromatics,  and  a  short  account  of  it  may 
make  what  follows  more  clearly  understood  by 
the  generality  of  readers. 

The  N ewtonian  theory  was  discovered,  or  rather 
the  discovery  of  others  was  confirmed,  by  that 
great  philosopher  in  the  following  manner : — 
In  the  window-shutter  of  a  darkened  room  he 
made  a  hole  of  about  the  third  of  an  inch  in  diam¬ 
eter,  behind  which,  at  a  short  distance,  he  placed 
a  prism,  so  that  a  ray  of  the  sun’s  light  might 
enter,  and  leave  it  at  equal  angles.  This  ray — 
which  before  the  introduction  of  the  prism  pro¬ 
ceeded  in  a  straight  line,  and  formed  a  round  spot 
upon  a  screen  placed  a  few  feet  distant  from  the 
window,  was  now  found  to  be  refracted — ap- 
3* 


80 


THE  LAWS  OF 


peared  of  an  oblong  form,  and  composed  of  seven 
different  colors  of  tbe  greatest  brilliancy,  imper¬ 
ceptibly  blended  together,  viz.,  violet,  indigo, 
bine,  green,  yellow,  orange,  and  red.  This  is 
called  tbe  solar  or  prismatic  spectrum. 

Tbe  theory  said  to  be  established  by  this  ex¬ 
periment  was,  that  the  white  light  of  the  sun  is 
composed  of  several  colors,  which  often  appear 
by  themselves,  and  that  this  white  light  can  be 
separated  into  its  elements. 

By^making  a  hole  in  the  screen  upon  which  the 
spectrum  is  formed,  opposite  to  each  of  these 
colors  successively,  so  as  to  allow  it  alone  to  pass, 
and  by  letting  the  color  thus  separated  fall  upon 
a  second  prism,  Sir  Isaac  Newton  found  that  the 
light  of  each  of  the  colors  was  alike  irrefrangible, 
— because  the  second  prism  could  not  separate 
any  of  them  into  an  oblong  image,  or  any  other 
color  than  its  own;  hence,  he  called  all  the  colors 
simple  or  homogeneous. 

The  other  theory  was  that  which  seemed  adopt¬ 
ed  by  almost  all  who  had  written  on  coloring 
connected  with  the  fine  arts,  and  was,  that  there 
were  only  three  simple  or  homogeneous  colors, 
and  that  all  others  resulted  from  their  various 
modes  of  combination.  Although  this  theory 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


31 


seemed  only  to  be  established  in  a  practical  point 
of  view,  and  was  unsupported  by  any  scientific 
experiments,  yet  it  appeared  to  me  more  consist¬ 
ent  with  the  general  simplicity  of  nature,  and  I 
could  not  believe  that  she  required  seven  homo¬ 
geneous  parts  to  produce  what  art  could  do  by 
three.  For  instance,  an  artist  can  make  all  the 
colors,  and  indeed  a  correct  representation  of  the 
prismatic  spectrum  (so  far  as  the  purity  of  his  ma¬ 
terials  Will  allow),  with  three  colors  only,  whilst, 
according  to  the  theory  of  Sir  Isaac  Newton,  *even 
simple  or  homogeneous  colors  were  the  constit¬ 
uents  of  the  real  one. 

The  following  discovery,  made  by  Buffon,  and 
illustrated  by  succeeding  philosophers,  helped  to 
strengthen  me  in  the  conviction.that  the  scientific 
theory  might  be,  like  that  of  the  practical  artist, 
reducible  to  three  simple  or  homogeneous  parts. 
If  we  look  steadily  for  a  considerable  time  upon 
a  spot  of  any  given  color,  placed  on  a  white  or 
black  ground,  it  will  appear  surrounded  by  a 
border  of  another  color.  And  this  color  will 
uniformly  be  found  to  be  that  which  makes  up 
the  harmonic  triad  of  red,  yellow,  and  blue ;  for 
if  the  spot  be  red,  the  border  will  be  green,  which 
is  composed  of  blue  and  yellow;  if  blue,  the 


82 


THE  LAWS  OF 


border  will  be  orange,  composed  of  yellow  and 
red;  and  if  yellow,  the  border  will  be  purple, 
making  in  all  cases  a  triunity  of  the  three  pri¬ 
mary  colors. 

With  a  view  to  throw  such  light  upon  the  sub¬ 
ject  as  my  limited  opportunities  would  permit,  I 
tried  over  the  experiments  by  which  Sir  Isaac 
JSTewton  came  to  the  conclusion,  that  there  were 
seven  primary  elements  in  the  solar  spectrum, 
and  the  same  results  occurred  ;  I  could  not  sepa¬ 
rate  any  one  of  the  colors  of  which  it  seemed 
composed  into  two.  The  imperceptible  manner 
in  which  the  colors  were  blended  together  upon 
the  spectrum,  however,  and  the  circumstance  of 
the  colors  which  practical  people  called  com¬ 
pound,  being  always  found  between  the  two  of 
which  they  understood  it  to  be  composed,  to¬ 
gether  with  my  previous  conviction,  induced  me 
to  continue  my  experiments:  and  although  I 
could  not,  by  analysis,  prove  that  there  were  only 
three  colors,  I  succeeded  m  proving  it  to  my  own 
satisfaction,  synthetically,  in  the  following  man¬ 
ner  : — 

After  having  tried  every  color  in  succession, 
and  finding  that  none  of  them  could  be  separated 
into  two,  I  next  made  a  hole  in  the  first  screen, 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING.  33 

in  the  centre  of  the  blue  of  the  spectrum,  and 
another  in  that  of  red.  I  had  thereby  a  spot  of 
each  of  these  colors  upon  a  second  screen.  I 
then,  by  means  of  another  prism,  directed  the 
blue  spot  to  the  same  part  of  the  second  screen 
on  which  the  red  appeared,  where  they  united 
and  produced  a  violet  as  pure  and  intense  as  that 
upon  the  spectrum.  I  did  the  same  with  the 
blue  and  yellow,  and  produced  the  prismatic 
green ;  as  also  with  the  red  and  yellow,  and 
orange  was  the  result.  I  tried,  in  the  same  man¬ 
ner,  to  mix  a  simple  with  what  I  thought  a 
compound  colpr,  but  they  did  not  unite ;  for  no 
sooner  was  the  red  spot  thrown  upon  the  green 
than  it  disappeared. 

I  tried  the  same  experiment  with  two  £pec- 
trums,  the  one  behind,  and  of  course  a  little 
above  the  other,  and  passed  a  spot  of  each  color 
successively  over  the  spectrum  which  was  farthest 
from  the  window,  and  the  same  result  occurred. 
It  therefore  appeared  to  me  that  these  three  colors 
had  an  affinity  to  one  another  that  did  not  exist 
in  the  others,  and  that  they  could  not  be  the  same 
in  every  respect,  except  color  and  refrangibility, 
as  had  hitherto  been  taught. 

These  opinions,  the  result  of  my  experiments, 


34 


THE  LAWS  OF 


I  published  in  1828,  as  being  an  appropriate  part 
of  a  treatise  of  this  nature,  and  I  did  so  with  great 
diffidence,  well  knowing  that  I  was  soaring  far 
above  my  own  element  in  making  an  attempt  to 
throw  light  upon  such  a  subject.  I  had,  however, 
the  gratification  to  learn  that  these  facts  were 
afterwards  proved  in  a  communication  read  to 
the  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  by  Sir  David 
Brewster,  on  the  21st  of  March,  1831,  in  which  he 
showed  that  white  light  consists  of  the  three 
primary  colors,  red,  yellow,  and  blue ;  and  that 
the  other  colors  shown  by  the  prism  are  com¬ 
posed  of  these.  It  may,  therefore,  now  be  confi¬ 
dently  assumed,  that  there  are  in  the  scientific 
theory,  as  in  that  of  the  artist,  only  three  primary 
homogeneous  colors,  of  which  all  others  are 
compounds. 

It  is  not,  however,  so  satisfactorily  settled  that 
the  light  of  the  sun  is  composed  of  colored  rays. 
Transient  colors  are  more  likely  to  be  the  result 
of  the  action  of  light  uj?on  shade,  and  not  the 
separation  of  light  into  its  elements.  This  is  not 
a  new  theory,  for  it  was  orignally  advanced  by 
Aristotle,  and  afterwards  adopted  by  Leonardo  da 
Yinci.  Neither  has  it  been  set  aside  by  modern 
investigators,  for  Goethe  has  taken  the  place 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


35 


of  Aristotle,  and  it  may  be  said  that  be  has  now 
established  it  as  a  fact  in  natural  philosophy  ; 
whilst  his  translator,  Eastlake,  has,  like  Leo¬ 
nardo  da  Yinci,  adopted  and  elucidated  it  as 
connected  with  the  practice  of  high  art. 

Goethe  states  his  opinion  in  the  following 
terms: — “Light-  and  darkness,  brightness  and 
obscurity,  or,  if  a  more  general  expression  is 
preferred,  light  and  its  absence,  are  necessary  to 
the  production  of  color.  Next  to  the  light,  a 
color  appears  which  we  call  yellow,  another 
appears  next  to  the  darkness  which  we  call  blue; 
when  these,  in  their  purest  state,  are  so  mixed 
that  they  are  exactly  equal,  they  produce  a  third 
color  called  green.  Each  of  the  two  first-named 
colors  can,  however,  of  itself,  produce  a  new 
tint,  by  being  condensed  or  darkened ;  they  thus 
acquire  a  reddish  appearance,  which  can  be  in¬ 
creased  to  so  great  a  degree  that  the  original 
blue  or  yellow  is  hardly  to  be  recognized  in  it  ; 
but  the  intensest  and -  purest  red,  especially  in 
physical  cases,  is  produced  whqn  the  twro  ex¬ 
tremes  of  the  yellow-red  and  the  blue-red  are 
united.  This  is  the  actual  state  of  the  appear¬ 
ance  and  generation  of  colors.  But  we  can  also 
assume  an  existing  red  in  addition  to  the  definite 


36 


THE  LAWS  OF 


existing  bine  and  yellow,  and  we  can  produce 
contrariwise,  by  mixing  wbat  we  directly  produce 
'by  augmentation  or  deepening.  With  these 
three,  or  six,  colors,  which  may  be  conveniently 
included  in  a  circle,  the  elementary  doctrine  of 
colors  is  alone  concerned.  All  other  modifica¬ 
tions,  which  may  be  extended  to  infinity,  have 
reference  to  the  technical  operations  of  the  painter 
and  dyer,  and  the  various  purposes  of  artificial 
life.  To  point  out  another  general  quality,  we 
may  observe,  that  colors,  throughout,  are  to  be 
considered  as  half-lights,  as  half- shadows,  on 
which  account,  if  they  are  so  mixed  as  recipro¬ 
cally  to  destroy  their  specific  hues,  a  shadowy 
tint  or  gray  is  produced.”* 

Eastlake  observes,  “That  the  opinion  so  often 
stated  by  Goethe,  namely,  that  increase  in  color 
supposes  increase  of  darkness,  may  be  granted 
without  difficulty.”  f  Again,  he  observes, — 
“Aristotle’s  notion  respecting  the  derivation  of 
color  from  white  and  black,  may  perhaps  be 
illustrated  by  the  following  opinion  on  the  very 
similiar  theory  of  Goethe.  1  Goethe  and  Seebeck 

*  Goethe’s  Theory  of  Colors.  Translated  by  Eastlake. 
Introduction,  pp.  xlii.  xliii. 

f  Ibid.  Note,  p.  365. 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


87 


regard  color  as  resulting  from  the  mixture  of 
white  and  black,  and  ascribe  to  the  different 
colors  a  quality  of  darkness  (cftusz'ov)  by  the  dif¬ 
ferent  degrees  of  which  they  are  distinguished 
— passing  from  white  to  black,  through  the  gra¬ 
dations  of  yellow,  orange,  red,  violet,  and  blue ; 
while  green  Appears  to  be  intermediate  again 
between  yellow  and  blue.  This  remark,  though 
it  has  no  influence  in  weakening  the  theory  of 
colors  proposed  by  Newton,  is  certainly  correct, 
having  been  confirmed  experimentally  by  the 
researches  of  Herschel,  who  ascertained  the  rela¬ 
tive  intensity  of  the  different  colored  rays,  by 
illuminating  objects  under  the  microscope  by 
their  means. 

“  ‘Another  certain  proof  of  the  difference  in 
brightness,  of  the  different  colored  rays,  is 
afforded  by  the  phenomena  of  ocular  spectra. 
If,  after  gazing  at  the  sun,  the  eyes  are  closed, 
so  as  to  exclude  the  light,  the  image  of  the  sun 
appears  at  first  as  a  luminous  or  white  spectrum, 
upon  a  dark  ground,  but  it  gradually  passes 
through  the  series  of  colors  to  black ;  that  is  to 
say,  until  it  can  no  longer  be  distinguished  from 
the  dark  field  of  vision ;  and  the  colors  which  it 
assumes,  are  successively  those  intermediate 
4 


88 


THE  LAWS  OF 


between  white  and  black,  in  the  order  of  their 
illuminating  power  of  brightness,  namely,  yellow, 
orange,  red,  violet,  nnd  blue.  If,  on  the  other 
hand,  after  looking  for  some  time  at  the  sun,  we 
turn  our  eyes  towards  a  white  surface,  the  image 
of  the  sun  is  seen  at  first  as  a  black  spectrum 
upon  the  white  surface,  and  gradually  passes 
through  the  different  colors,  from  the  darkest  to 
the  lightest,  tmd  at  last  becomes  white,  so  that  it 
can  no  longer  be  distinguished  from  the  white 
surface.’  ”* 

These  authorities  appear  quite  sufficient  to 
warrant  the  adoption  of  the  hypothesis,  that 
shade  as  well  as  light  acts  in  the  production  of 
transient  colors,  and  that  the  solar  spectrum  is 
the  result  of  the  ternary  division  of  the  action  of 
light  upon  darkness  performed  by  the  three- 
sided  prism. 

But  the  original  cause  of  light  and  color  is  a 
point  upon  which  natural  philosophers  have  not 
as  yet  come  to  a  decision,  and  as  little  beyond 
conjecture  had  been  advanced  upon  the  subject, 

I  hazarded  the  publication  of  an  idea  of  my  own 

*  Elements  of  Physiology ,  by  J.  Muller,  M.  D.  Translated 
from  the  German  by  William  Bailly,  M.  D.  London  :  1839. 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


89 


upon  it  in  an  appendix  to  another  work  (The 
Nomenclature  of  Colors,  &c.).  In  this  hypothesis 
I  adopted  the  theory,  that  ctdor  is  an  intermediate 
phenomenon  between  those  of  light  and  darkness, 
the  perception  of  which,  like  light  itself,  is  con¬ 
veyed  to  the  mind  through  the  most  perfect  of 
our  senses ;  and  that  the  impression  made  upon 
this  sense  conveys  to  the  understanding  the  per¬ 
ception  of  light  and  color,  by  means  of  some 
inherent  quality  in  the  atmosphere,  which  we 
know  to  be  an  elastic  fluid — impenetrable,  inert, 
movable,  and  possessed  of  a  certain  gravity, 
reducible  in  proportion  to  the  degree  of  attenua¬ 
tion  to  which  it  may  be  subjected,  and  when  pure, 
to  consist  principally  of  nitrogen  gas  and  oxygen 
gas,  with  a  small  proportion  of  aqueous  vapor 
and  carbonic  acid.  Now  as  these  elements  are, 
according  to  a  well-established  theory,  composed 
of  individual  atoms  or  molecules,  I  supposed  it 
probable  that  the  sun,  .  or  any  other  luminous 
body,  might  act  upon  these  atomic  particles,  elec¬ 
trically  or  otherwise,  so  as  to  put  them  into 
harmonic  motion  amongst  themselves,  each  upon 
its  own  axis,  thus  rendering  them  luminous  by 
friction,  and  producing  pure  or  white  light.  I 
supposed  it  $lso  to  be  probable  that  the  partial 


40 


THE  LAWS  OF 


interruption  of  tliis  atomic  motion  might  produce 
shades, — a  change  in  its  mode,  colors, — and  its 
total  interruption,  blackness.  As  every  material 
body  is  also  understood  to  be  composed  of  atoms, 
it  may  likewise  be  reasonably  supposed  that  their 
modes  of  arrangement,  in  the  constitution  of  such 
bodies,  as  well  as  their  individual  configuration, 
will  render  them  capable  of  receiving  this  motion 
of  light  in  ways  so  infinitely  various,  as  to  account 
for  the  production  of  every  possible  variety  of 
shade  and  color.  Many  processes  in  dyeing  pro¬ 
duce  colors  simply  by  a  change  in  the  arrange¬ 
ment  of  the  atoms  of  which  the  substance  dyed  is 
composed,  thus  affecting  the  atomic  motion  of 
light  upon  its  surface.  It  is  equally  probable 
that  the  mode  of  arrangement  of  the  atoms  in 
crystals,  and  other  transparent  media,  may  be 
thus  affected,  and  made  to  communicate  a  like 
motion  to  those  of  the  atmosphere  beyond  them, 
producing  colored  light,  as  those  atoms  on  the 
surface  of  opaque  Bodies  reflect  it. 

In  the  article  on  Chromatics,  in  the  Eneycb- 
■jpsedia  Britannica ,  the  hypothesis  advanced  is,  that 
variously  colored  rays  emanate  from  the  sun, 
each  possessing  a  different  degree  of  intensity,  and 
that  there  may  possibly  be  a  multitude  of  rays  of 


I 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING.  41 

each  color,  moving  with  various  velocities,  and 
only  affecting  the  sense  when  they  have  the 
velocity  appropriate  to  tha1*color  in  the  ey§.  But 
the  hypothesis  of  atomic  motion  which  I  have 
suggested,  is  independent  of  any  such  complicated 
process :  for  although  the  motion  it  supposes  to 
be  communicated  by  luminous  bodies  to  the 
gaseous  atoms  may  be  various,  the  progress  of 
the  communication  may  be  perfectly  uniform. 

Simplicity  seems  the  first  principle  in  all 
nature’s  works,  and,  as  I  have  elsewhere  ob¬ 
served,  the  more  we  investigate  her  operations, 
the  more  we  become  convinced  of  the  simplicity 
of  the  means  by  which  the  phenomena  that  are 
daily  attracting  our  attention  are  performed.  If, 
therefore,  we  can  account  for  the  phenomena  of 
light  and  color  as  satisfactorily  by  the  means 
known  to  exist,  as  by  supposing  the  necessity  of 
material  particles,  or  an  ethereal  fluid  to  assist 
these  (agreeable  to  the  different  theories  of  New¬ 
ton  and  Huygens),  the  subject  is  simplified,  and 
so  far  agrees  with  the  facts  which  philosophy  has 
brought  within  the  sphere  of  our  knowledge. 


4* 


42 


THE  LAWS  OF 


ON  THE  ANALOGY  BETWEEN  COLOK  AND 
SOUND. 

Harmonious  arrangements  of  colors  being 
snob  combinations  as,  bj  certain  principles  of 
our  nature,  produce  an  effect  on  the  eye,  similar 
to  that  which  is  produced  by  harmonious  mg^ic 
on  the  ear,  and  as  a  remarkable  conformity  exists 
between  the  science  of  color  and  that  of  sound, 
in  their  fundamental  principles,  as  well  as  in 
their  effects,  I  shall  probably  best  lead  the  reader 
to  a  proper  comprehension  of  the  former  by 
tracing  this  analogy,  the  more  especially  as  the 
art  of  music  is  much  more  generally  understood, 
although,  at  the  same  time,  it  is  much  to  be  re¬ 
gretted  that  a  knowledge  of  its  first  principles, 
or  natural  philosophy,  is  very  rare,  even  amongst 
its  professors.  This  analogy  will  help  to  show, 
that  the  laws  which  govern  color  are  irrefraga¬ 
ble,  and,  at  the  same  time,  a  knowledge  of  them 
as  practically  necessary  to  the  colorist  in  art, 
manufacture,  or  decoration,  as  a  knowledge  of 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


48 


those  which  govern  sound  is  to  the  musician.  It 
is  well  known  to  those  who  have  studied  music 
in  the  proper  way,  that  there  are  three  funda¬ 
mental  notes,  viz.,  the  first,  third,  and  fifth  of  the 
scale — and  technically  called  the  tonic,  the  medi¬ 
ant,  and  the  dominant — and  that  these  notes, 
when  sounded  together,  produce  the  common 
5  chord,  which  is  the  foundation  of  all  harmony  in 
musical  composition.  So  it  is  in  chromatics, — 
there  are  likewise  only  three  fundamental  colors, 
—blue,  red,  and  yellow,  forming  the  triad  from 
which  arises  all  harmony  in  painting. 

By  the  combination  of  any  two  of  these  pri¬ 
mary  colors,  a  secondary  color  of  a  distinct  kind 
is  produced ;  and  as  only  one  absolutely  distinct 
denomination  of  color,  called  a  hue,  can  arise 
from  a  combination  of  the  three  primaries,  the 
full  number  of  really  distinct  tones  is  seven,  cor¬ 
responding  to  the  seven  notes  in  the  complete 
scale  of  the  musician.  Each  of  these  colors  is 
capable  of  forming  a  key  or  tonic  for  an  arange- 
ment,  to  which  all  the  other  colors  introduced 
must  refer  subordinately.  This  reference  and 
subordination  to  one  particular  color  or  hue  gives 
a  character  to  the  whole,  which  is  precisely  the 


44 


THE  LAWS  OF 


case  in  regard  to  the  key-note  in  musical  compo¬ 
sition. 

This  characteristic  of  an  arrangement  of  color 
is  generally  called  its  tone ;  hut  it  appears  to  me 
that  this  term  is  more  applicable  to  individual 
hues,  as  it  is  in  music  to  voices  and  instruments 
alone.  Yet,  to  avoid  obscurity,  I  shall  continue 
to  use  it  in  the  sense  in  which  it  is  generally  ap¬ 
plied  to  coloring. 

From  the  three  primary  colors — yellow,  red, 
and  blue — arise,  first,  the  secondary  colors — 
orange,  purple,  and  green,  and  then  an  infinite 
variety  of  hues,  tints,  and  shades ;  so  that  the 
colorist,  like  the  musician,  notwithstanding  the 
limited  number  of  the  fundamental  parts  of  his 
art,  has  ample  scope  for  the  production  of  origi¬ 
nality  and  beauty  in  the  various  combinations 
and  arrangements  of  which  they  are  susceptible. 

The  three  homogeneous  colors — yellow,  red, 
and  blue,  have  a  numerical  relation  to  each  other, 
in  their  respective  powers,  which  correspond  in 
a  remarkable  manner  to  the  numerical  ratios 
found  to  exist  in  the  respective  lengths  of  the 
monochord  that  produce  the  harmonics  in  music, 
and  the  corresponding  undulations  which  their 
vibration  produce  in  the  atmosphere. 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


45 


When  the  three  primary  colors  are  reflected 
from  any  opaque  body,  in  their  proper  propor¬ 
tions,  neutrality  is  produced.  They  are  then  in 
an  active  state  by  reflection,  but  each  is  neu¬ 
tralized,  to  a  certain  extent,  by  the  relative  effect 
that  the  others  have  upon  it.  When  they  are 
absorbed,  or  the  action  which  produces  them 
interrupted,  in  the  same  proportions,  they  are 
in  a  passive  state,  and  black  is  the  result.  When 
transmitted  through  any  transparent  body,  the 
effect  is  the  same ;  but  in  the  first  case  they  are 
material  or  inherent,  and  in  the  second  impalpa¬ 
ble  or  transient.  Color,  therefore,  depends  en¬ 
tirely  on  the  reflective  or  refractive  power  of 
bodies,  as  the  transmission  or  reflection  of  sound 
does  upon  their  vibratory  powers. 

The  secondary  colors  arise  from  the  combina¬ 
tion  of  the  primary  colors  in  the  following 
manner:  Yellow  and  red,  being  mixed,  produce 
orange  color  ;  red  and  blue,  purple  ;  and  yellow 
and  blue,  green ;  and\heir  peculiar  quality  will 
depend  upon  the  relative  quantities  and  intensity 
of  the  primary  colors  of  which  they  are  com¬ 
pounded.  These  secondary  colors  are  called  the 
accidental  or  complimentary  colors  to  the  pri¬ 
maries,  from  the  phenomenon  already  referred  to. 


46 


THE  LAWS  OP 


And  this  is  precisely  the  case  in  regard  to  musi¬ 
cal  notes.  When  any  given  note  is  sounded, 
especially  upon  a  stringed  instrument,  it  is  either 
accompanied  or  immediately  succeeded  by  others, 
which  are  called  its-harmonics.  Out  of  this  reci¬ 
procating  quality  amongst  colors,  arises  all 
chromatic  harmony,  and  it  consequently  embodies 
the  first  principles  of  beauty  in  coloring,  as  the 
harmonic  relations  of  the  three  notes  in  music, 
called  the  tonic,  the  dominant,  and  the  mediant — • 
or  the  1st,  5th,  and  3d  of  the  scale — embody  the 
first  principles  of  beauty  in  sounds.  I  here  place 
the  5th  before  the  3d,  because  the  numerical 
relation  of  the  5th  to  the  1st  is  relative  to  the 
number  3,  whilst  that  of  the  3d  is  relative  to  the 
number  5 ;  and'  it  is  here  worthy  of  remark,  that 
the  5th  first  succeeds  the  tonic,  although  an  octavo 
higher,  and  afterwards-  the  3d,  another  octavo 
higher.  Neither  do  the  complimentary  colors 
appear  in  an  intensity  equivalent  to  the  color 
upon  which  the  eye  restgj  but  evidently  much 
weaker. 

From  the  combination  of  the  secondary  colors 
arise  the  tertiaries  or  primary  hues,  which  are 
also  three  in  number,  as  follow :  olive  or  blue- 
hue,  from  the  mixture  of  the  purple  and  green ; 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING-. 


47 


citron  or  yellow-hue,  from  the  mixture  of  the 
green  and  orange;  and  russet  or  red-hue,  from 
*  the  mixture  of  orange  and  purple.  These  three 
colors,  it  will  be  observed,  are  produced  by  the 
admixture  of  the  same  ingredients  —  the  three 
primaries — which  always,  less  or  more,  neutral¬ 
ize  each  other  in  triunity.  The  most  neutral  of 
'hues  being  gray,  the  mean  between  black  and 
white,,  as  any  of  the  secondaries  are  between  two 
of  the  primaries,  it  may  appropriately  be  termed, 
although  in  reality  a  hue,  the  seventh  color. 
These  tertiary  colors,- however,  stand  in  the  same 
relation  to  the  secondary  colors  that  the  secon¬ 
daries  do  to  the  primaries — olive  to  orange, 
citron  to  purple,  and  russet  to  green;  and  their 
proportions  will  be  found  to  be  in  the  same 
accordance,  because  they  neutralize  each  other 
integrally. 

Out  of  the  primary  hues,  by  a  similar  mode  of 
combination  and  proper  balancing  of  their  rela¬ 
tive  powers,  arise  the  secondary  hues,  which 
have  been  popularly  termed  brown,  marone,  and 
slate,  but  are  more  properly  orange-liue,  purple- 
hue,  and  green-hue  ;  and  to  these  the  same  rules 
of  contrast  are  equally  applicable. 

Besides  this  relation  of  contrast  in  opposition, 


48 


THE  LAWS  OF 


colors  have  a  relation  in  series,  which  is  their 
melody.  This  melody,  or  harmony  of  succession, 
is  found  in  all  the  natural  phenomena  of  color. 
Each  color  on  the  prismatic  spectrum,  and  in  the 
rainbow,  is  melodized  by  the  two  compounds 
which  it  forms  with  the  other  two  primaries. 

§  f  •  t 

For  instance,  the  yellow  is  melodized  by  the 
orange  on  the  one  side,  and  the  green  on  the  other, 
the  blue  by  the  green  and  purple,  and  the  red  by 
the  purple  and  orange.  Field,  in  his  excellent 
Essay  on  the  Analogy  and  Harmony  of  Colors, 
has  shown  these  coincidences  by  a  diagram,  in 
which  he  has  accommodated  the  chromatic  scale 
of  the  colorist  to  the  diatonic  series  of  the  musi¬ 
cian,  showing  that  the  concords  and  discords  are 
also  singularly  coincident — but  such  an  illustra¬ 
tion  would  be  too  complex  for  a  work  of  this 
simple  kind. 

The  senses  of  hearing  and  seeing  do  each  con¬ 
vey  to  the  mind  impressions  of  pleasure  or  pain, 
in  the  modes  in  which  they  are  acted  upon  by 
external  objects — hearing,  by  the  modes  in  which 
such  objects,  by  their  motion,  produce  an  effect 
upon  the  surrounding  atmosphere,  and  seeing,  by 
the  modes  in  which  light  acts  upon  them.  In 
other  works  I  have  endeavored  to  point  out,  in 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


49 


detail,  the  mathematical  nature  of  these  modes, 
and  to  show  that  the  elements  of  beauty  in  sound, 
color,  and  form,  are  identical  in  the  numerical 
ratios  of  their  powers  upon  each  other.  These 
details  need  not,  therefore,  be  gone  further  into 
here,  especially  as  to  my  wish  to  treat  the  subject 
less  abstrusely  and  more  concisely  than  in  the 
works  to  which  reference  has  j  ust  been  made.  * 
Sounds,  when  addressed  to  the  ear  in  intelligi¬ 
ble  language,  convey  to  the  mind  a  meaning, 
either  descriptive  of  an  idea,  or  of  some  object 
which  is  acknowledged  by  the  understanding,  and 
this  may  be  entirely  independent  of  music. 
Forms,  when  intelligibly  presented  to  the  eye, 
representing,  even  in  outline,  any  known  object 
or  established  idea,  convey  to  the  mind  an  under¬ 
standing  of  the  object  or  idea  entirely  independ¬ 
ent  of  color.  It  is  well  known  as  a  physiological 
fact,  that  there  are  individuals  whose  ears  are  so 
constituted  that  they  cannot  distinguish  music 
from  any  other  species  of  sound,  although  their 
sense  of  hearing  may  be  perfect  in  every  other 
respect ;  and  that  there  are  also  individuals  whose 
eyes  are  so  constituted  that  they  are  equally  in¬ 
capable  of  distinguishing  colors,  although  their 
orga‘ns  of  vision  may  likewise  be  perfect  in  every 
5 


50 


THE  LAWS  OP 


other  respect.  Therefore,  there  seems  to  be  a 
physiological  analogy  exhibited  in  these  organs 
of  sense. 

When  we  reflect  on '  the  nature  of  music,  we 
find  it  to.  be  simply  a  variety  of  sounds,  having 
a  mathematical  relation  to  each  other  in  their 
pitch  and  in  their  duration,  arranged,  in  the  first 
instance,  so  as  to  follow  each  other  in  certain 
modes  agreeably  to  these  mathematical  relations. 
This  mode  of  succession  produces  a  melody  or 
air,  which  is  the  subject  of  the  composition.  In 
the  second  instance,  that  it  is  composed  of  a 
variety  of  sounds,  relating  also  mathematically 
to  each  other  in  combination,  or  as  they  are  made 
to  agree  with  each  other  when  produced  simulta¬ 
neously  ;  and  this  is  called  harmony. 

Sounds  arranged  in  this  way,  convey  no  further 
intelligible  meaning  to  the  mind  of  man,  than 
that  which  depends  upon  the  propriety  of  their 
combination  in  both  these  respects.  Now  this 
propriety  in  their  combination  has  been  proved 
to  depend  upon  irrefragable  laws,  which  are 
based  upon  a  branch  of  natural  philosophy  called 
acoustics. 

The  power  with  which  the  human  mind  may 
be  thus  affected — simply  by  the  scientific  pro- 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


51 


duction  of  sounds  in  successive  and  combined 
harmony,  having  individually  in  themselves  no 
intelligible  meaning — is  well  known.  The  turbid 
and  excited  mind  may  be  soothed,  and  the  most 
benign  feelings  of  our  nature  excited — men  may 
be  roused  from  a  state  of  apathy  to  attempt  deeds 
of  daring  valor,  or  withdrawn  from  sinfulness  to 
remorse  and  devotion — by  the  influence  of  music. 

In  all  this  we  have  nothing  more  than  a  scien¬ 
tific  combination  of  sounds  addressed  to  the  ear. 
Nature  also  presents  sounds  to  the  ear,  as  she 
does  color  to  the  eye,  in  those  subtle  combina¬ 
tions  that  are  often  in  both  cases  adopted  by  men 
of  genius,  as  themes  for  the  highest  productions 
in  art.  From  nature,  we  receive  both  impres¬ 
sions,  with  equal  intensity ;  our  eye  is  as  much 
delighted  by  the  ever  varying  tints  and  hues  of 
the  landscape,  as  our  ear  is  by  songs  of  birds,  the 
murmuring  of  streamlets,  or  sighing  of  the  gentle 
winds  of  summer.  But  in  the  one  case,  science 
combined  with  art,  has  enabled  us  to  produce  an 
infinite  variety  of  beautiful  effects,  by  combina¬ 
tions  of  mere  sounds,  while  the  arranging  of 
colors,  unless  in  connection  with  imitative  art,  is 
still  very  generally  considered  a  matter  of  mere 
whim  or  caprice.  Though  the  artist  enhances 


52 


THE  LAWS  OF 


his  work  by  judicious  coloring,  yet  it  has  other 
constituents  of  excellence  which  form  its  subject. 
In  the  same  way,  the  song  of  the  poet  is  enhanced 
by  appropriate  music.  But  the  music  of  the 
composer  may  be  produced  with  a  certain  effect, 
independently  of  the  words  of  the  poet,  because 
the  science  of  its  composition  is  understood,  while 
the  coloring  of  the  picture,  for  want  of  a  know¬ 
ledge  of  the  science  of  chromatics,  can  in  no 
other  way  be  produced,  than  in  connection  with 
its  language — the  imitation  of  nature  which  it 
exhibits. 

ISTo  one  will  deny  to  the  eye,  the  power  of  affect¬ 
ing  the  mind  as  sensibly,  by  wbat  it  conveys  to 
the  sensorium,  as  the  ear  does  through  the  same 
medium ;  and  what  is  the  coloring  of  poetry  but 
appropriate  music  ?  and  this  music,  as  just  ob¬ 
served,  may  affect  the  mind  to  a  certain  extent, 
independently  of  the  poetry.  It  therefore  appears 
clear,  that  if  the  science  of  coloring  was  properly 
cultivated,  it  might  be  made  to  affect  the  mind, 
independently  of  any  other  intelligible  meaning 
than  its  scientific  combination.  It  is  such  con¬ 
siderations  as  these  that  give  importance  to  the 
analogy  between  color  and  sound.  (Note  A.) 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


53 


ON  COLORS  GENERALLY. 

There  are  only  three  distinct  classes  of  colors, 
and  they  are  termed  primaries,  secondaries,  and 
tertiaries,  or  hues. 

A  primary  color  is  a  simple  element  that 
cannot  he  separated  into  parts,  hut  may  he  re¬ 
duced  to  a  tint  hy  white,  or  to  a  shade  hy  hlack. 
The  admixture  of  either  of  the  other  two  primary 
colors  changes  it  to  a  secondary  color. 

A  secondary  color  is  consequently  pro¬ 
duced  hy  the  comhination  of  two  primary  colors. 
These  secondaries,  like  the  primaries,  may  he 
reduced  to  tints  and  shades  hy  the  admixture  of 
white  or  hlack,  and  may  also,  hy  the  subordi¬ 
nation  of  either  of  their  component  parts,  he 
changed  in  tone,  while  their  names  generally 
remain  the  same.  Hence  arise  an  immense  num¬ 
ber  of  modifications  of  each  of  these  secondary 
colors, — of  orange  from  the  yellowest  to  the  red- 
5* 


54 


THE  LAWS  OF 


dest — of  green  from  the  yellowest  to  the  bluest 
— and  of  purple  from  the  reddest  to  tbe  bluest, 
with  a  few  exceptions  which  shall  be  afterwards 
noticed.  A  secondary  color  cannot,  therefore, 
be  changed  in  character,  but  by  the  admixture 
of  its  contrasting  primary,  or  by  its  combination 
with  one  of  the  other  secondaries,  by  either  of 
which  it  becomes  a  hue. 

A  tertiary  color,  or  hue,  is  consequently 
compounded  of  two  secondary  colors,  and  is,  con¬ 
sequently,  a  mixture  of  the  three  primaries ;  it 
may,  therefore,  be  modified  in  tone  to  a  much 
greater  extent  than  either  of  the  two  preceding 
classes.  These  modifications  are  effected  by  the 
predominance  or  subordination  of  any  of  its  com¬ 
ponent  parts,  as  also  by  the  power  of  neutraliza¬ 
tion  possessed  by  each  of  those  parts  upon  the 
other  two. 

Each  of  the  six  colors  has  its  specific  hue,  and 
they  may  be  thus  compounded.  Yellow-hue,  by 
orange  and  green ;  red-hue,  by  orange  and  purple ; 
blue-hue,  by  purple  and  green ;  orange-hue  by 
yellow-hue  and  red-hue ;  green-hue,  by  yellow- 
hue  and  blue-hue ;  and  purple-hue  by  red-hue 
and  blue-hue,  as  shown  upon  the  followig  dia¬ 
gram,  a  colored  example  of  which  faces  the  title- 
page. 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


55 


DIAGRAM  OF  THE  PRIMARY  AND  SECONDARY 
COLORS  AND  THEIR  HUES. 


A  tint  is  not  in  itself  a  specific  color  or  hue, 
but  one  of  the  gradations  of  any  color  or  hue 
from  its  most  perfect  state  of  intensity  towards 
white.  The  variety  of  tints  is,  therefore,  incal¬ 
culably  greater  than  that  of  colors  and  hues. 

A  shade  is,  in  like  manner,  one  of  the  incal¬ 
culable  gradations  of  any  color  or  hue  from  its 
most  perfect  state  of  intensity  towards  black. 


56 


THE  LAWS  OF 


In  their  contrasting  powers,  colors  nrast  bear 
relation  to  one  another  in  respect  to  their  hue, 
tint,  and  shade.  A  hue  of  any  color  musj  bear 
a  relative  proportion  to  the  hue  with  which  it  is 
intended  to  form  an  equal  contrast  in  the  pre¬ 
dominance  of  the  color  from  which  it  takes  its 
name.  A  tint  of  one  color  introduced  into  an 
arrangement  as  an  equivalent  contrast  to  a  tint 
of  another  color,  ought  to  be  equal  in  dilute¬ 
ness,  or  in  its  stage  of  approximation  towards 
white.  And,  in  like  manner,  shades  of  two 
colors  intended  to  contrast  each  other  equally, 
ought  to  be  of  equal  depth.  All  these  equal 
contrasts  depend  upon  the  relative  powers  of 
the  primary  and  secondary  colors’  one  of  which 
must  predominate  in  every  hue,  tint,  and  shade : 
because  when  they  are  equally  compounded, 
they  produce  neutrality.  It  is,  therefore,  easy 
for  any  one  with  a  good  eye,  and  such  a  know¬ 
ledge  of  the  relative  powers  of  the  six  colors  as 
may  be  very  easily  attained,  to  produce  this 
elementary  species  of  harmonious  coloring. 

Black  and  white,  however,  as  they  form  a  per¬ 
fect  contrast  to  each  other,  being  the  extremes 
of  light  and  shade,  impart  this  quality  to  the 
colors  with  which  they  are  combined.  There- 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


57 


fore,  as  a  shade  deepens  towards  black,  the  tint 
employed  as  a  perfect  contrast  of  light  and  shade, 
as  welt  as  color,  onght  to  approximate  in  an 
equal  ratio  towards  white. 

But  besides  the  contrasts  that  are  equal  as  to 
color,  and  as  to  light  and  shade,  there  is  a  more 
refined  species  by  which  all  the  colors  in  a  com¬ 
position,  except  one,  are  held  in  a  certain  degree 
of  subordination,  in  order  to  give  that  particular 
color  a  force  or  prominence  in  the  group ;  and 
this  applies  to  the  light  and  shade  by  which  the 
intensity  of  the  colors  is  reduced,  as  much  as  to 
the  colors  themselves.  Such  contrasts  may  be 
termed  imperfect,  and  it  is  by  these  especially 
that  the  teachable  coloring  of  the  decorator  or  of 
the  manufacturer,  can  approach  the  unteachable 
coloring  of  high  art.  As  a  knowledge  of  these 
contrasts  can  only  be  given  by  going  into  greater 
detail  than  would  be  consistent  with  the  simple 
nature  of  this  treatise, — and,  indeed,  could  not  be 
understood  without  such  a  number  of  colored 
diagrams  as  would  render  it  too  expensive  for 
many  of  those  for  whose  use  it  is  principally  in¬ 
tended, — I  must  refer  such  of  my  readers  as  may 
wish  to  go  more* deeply  into  the  subject,  to  my 
“Principles  of  Beauty  in  Coloring  Systematized,” 


58 


THE  LAWS  OF 


and  my  “Nomenclature  of  Colors,  Hues,  Tints, 
and  Shades.” 

As  the  effect  of  all  arrangements  of  colors  de¬ 
pends  as  much  on  the  media  which  accompany 
and  unite  them  as  on  the  colors  themselves,  the 
greatest  attention  ought  to  be  paid  to  the  tone 
and  character  of  this  class  of  hues.  It  is  by 
adapting  them  properly  that  the  greatest  distinc¬ 
tions  are  reconciled  and  brought  to  an  imper¬ 
ceptible  adjunct;  and  it  is  by  them  that  tone, 
keeping,  and  repose,  are  given  to  the  whole.  A 
neglect  of  these  mediatory  colors  is  the  chief 
cause  of  that  crudity  and  confusion  of  parts,  so 
conspicuous  in  many  of  the  colored  goods  manu¬ 
factured  at  the  present  period. 

In  arranging  colors,  therefore,  either  in  manu¬ 
factures  or  decoration,  whether  a  few  or  a  great 
variety  are  to  be  employed,  the  effect  of  the 
whole,  as  well  as  the  several  component  parts, 
will  depend  as  much  on  attention  to  this  as  on 
the  skill  with  which  they  tire  harmonized  in 
contrast  and  succession  to  each  other.  And  it 
must  be  borne  in  mind,  that  no  perfectly  harmo¬ 
nious  arrangement  of  colors  can  be  made  unless 
all  the  three  primaries  be  present,  either  in  a 
simple  or  mixed  state ;  and  that  the  distinctions 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


59 


of  harmony  depend  upon  a  predominance,  either 
of  one  of  these  three,  or  of  one  of  the  secondaries. 

The  diagram  to  which  I  have  already  alluded, 
exhibits  a  general  harmony  of  all  the  colors  of 
any  distinctive  character,  simple  and  compound, 
except  the  neutral  gray,  which  is  represented, 
although  imperfectly,  by  the  engraved  ground¬ 
work.  It  will  be  observed  that  each  limb  of 
this  diagram  forms  a  series  of  hues  proceeding 
from  one  of  the  primaries,  and  producing  a  dis¬ 
tinct  melody,  or  harmony  in  succession,  of  that 
color.  It  will  also  be  seen,  that  in  each  of  these 
harmonies,  although  a  primary  color  predomi¬ 
nates,  as  a  key-note  does  in  music,  the  other  two 
primaries  enter,  in  combination,  into  the  arrange¬ 
ment,  as  shall  be  more  fully  noticed  in  treating 
of  them  separately.  There  is  also  shown,  upon 
this  diagram,  the  progress  of  color  from  light  to 
darkness,  or  from  white  to  black ;  as  also  in  its 
nine  central  divisions,  the  harmony,  in  succes¬ 
sion  and  contrast,  of  the  primary  and  secondary 
colors.  Its  general  arrangement,  I  trust,  will 
likewise  show  that  all  the  colors  and  hues,  in 
their  greatest  intensity,  may  be  brought  together 
without  crudity  or  harshness  resulting  from  their 
combination. 


60 


THE  LAWS  OF 


The  terms  warm  and  cold,  as  applied  to  color, 
are  not  very  generally  understood ;  I  shall,  there¬ 
fore,  endeavor  to  explain  their  meaning.  Of 
the  three  primary  colors,  red  is  most  allied  to 
warmth,  and  blue  to  coldness,  whilst  yellow  re¬ 
mains  neutral  in  these  respects.  Indeed,  red 
fully  embodies  the  principle  of  warmth,  and 
blue  of  coldness,  because  wherever  the  former 
predominates  in  any  mixed  color,  the  tone  is 
reckoned  warm  in  the  degree  of  such  predomi¬ 
nance;  and  where  the  latter  predominates,  the 
compound  is  termed  a  cool-toned  hue,  to  the  ex- 
dent  also  of  the  predominance  of  that  color.  The 
term  warm,  or  hot,  as  some  writers  have  it,  being 
applied  to  red,  in  art,  may  have  originated  in  the 
resemblance  of  that  color  to  fire,  as  much  as 
from  its  powerful  effect  upon  the  eye ;  and  that 
of  cold,  to  blue,  from  being  so  opposite  to  red  in 
its  effects;  but,  whatever  the  terms  may  have 
arisen  from,  they  are  perfectly  significant,  and 
thoroughly  understood  by  painters  and  amateurs. 
It  should,  therefore,  J)e  kept  in  view,  that  yellow 
is  a  color  allied  to  light,  without  being  either  of 
a  cool  or  a  warm  tone — that  red  is  intermediate 
as  to  light  and  shade,  but  decidedly  of  a  warm 
tone — and  that  blue  is  a  color  allied  to  darkness, 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


61 


and  decidedly  of  a  cool  tone.  Red  is  not  altered 
in  tone  by  tbe  introduction  of  yellow,  because 
the  product  of  tbe  mixture,  orange,  is  decidedly 
a  warm-toned  color ;  neither  is  blue  altered  in 
tone  by  tbe  introduction  of  yellow,  because  tbe 
product  of  tbe  mixture,  green,  is  a  cool-toned 
color.  Yellow  imparts  light  to  red  and  blue, 
and  blue  imparts  shade  to  red  and  yellow. 

In  all  general  arrangements,  which  are  not 
necessarily  confined  to  any  particular  leading 
color,  it  ought  to  be  kept  in  view,  what  nature 
has  pointed  out  in  the  most  distinct  manner  in 
all  her  coloring,  namely,  that  those  cool-toneS 
and  tempered  colors  which  are  most  agreeable  to 
the  eye  should'  predominate,  and  that  vivid  and 
intense  colors  should  upon  all  occasions  be  used 
with  a  sparing  hand. 


6 


62 


THE  LAWS  OF 


ON  THE  APPLICATION  OF  THE  LAWS  OF  HAR¬ 
MONIOUS  COLORING  TO  HOUSE-PAINTING 
AND  MANUFACTURES. 

The  boose-painter  should  start  with  the  prin¬ 
ciple  so  apparent  in  the  coloring  of  nature,  to 
which  reference  has  just  been  made,  namely, 
that  bright  and  intense  colors  should  be  used 
with  a  sparing  hand,  especially  in  situations 
where  they  receive  a  direct  light ;  and  that  such 
colors  should  only  be  employed  to  heighten  the 
general  effect,-  and  to  add  splendor  to  rich  and 
full-toned  arrangements  by  their  sparkling  quali¬ 
ties. 

The  manufacturer  has  a  greater  latitude,  for  his 
productions  may,  i-n  most  cases,  be  neutralized 
by  what  accompanies  them  in  a  more  general 
arrangement.  In  the  finest  specimens  of  Persian 
and  Turkish  carpets,  the  deep  tones  of  indigo 
and  brown  predominate,  while  the  bright  hues 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


63 


and  tints  only  appear  to  detail  and  heighten  the 
effect  of  the  pattern.  * 

It  has  been  said  that  coloring,  like  sound  in 
music  or  poetry,  should  be  an  echo  to  the  sense, 
and  according  to  the  general  sentiment  which 
the  subject  should  inspire,  it  will  be  gay,  lively, 
sombre,  or  solemn.  Although  this  remark  was 
made  with,  reference  to  subjects  of  high  art,  it  is 
equally  applicable  to  the  coloring  of  the  apart¬ 
ments  of  a  dwelling-house,  and,  indeed,  to  that  of 
every  building  whatever,  as  well  as  to  every 
kind  of  colored  manufacture  employed  in  their 
decoration. 

Every  artist  in  the  higher  branches  of  painting 
has  a  particular  style  of  coloring  to  study,  pecu¬ 
liarly  adapted  to  the  nature  of  the  generality  of 
his  subjects,  but  the  house-painter’s  styles  must 
not  only  be  as  various  as  the  uses  of  the  apart¬ 
ments  which  he  decorates,  but  must  vary  accord¬ 
ing  to  the  different  tastes  of  his  employers :  and, 
further,  he  must  take  into  consideration  not  only 
the  style  of  architecture,  the  situation,  whether 
in  town  or  country,  but  the  very  rays  by  which 
each  apartment  is  lighted,  whether  they  proceed 
directly  from  the  sun,  or  are  merely  reflected 
from  the  northern  sky ;  he  must  confine  himself 


64 


THE  LAWS  OF 


to  neither  a  vivid,  sombre,  warm,  nor  cold  style 
of  coloring ;  all  must  be  equally  at  bis  command, 
and  in  all,  the  same  strict  attention  to  harmony 
must  be  observed. 

The  house-painter  has  often  another  very 
serious  difficulty  to  encounter.  A  variety  of 
highly  and  variously-colored  furniture  is  shown 
him,  to  which  the  coloring  of  the  different  parts 
of  a  room  must  be  suited;  it  is  here  that  his 
powers  of  balancing,  harmonizing,  and  uniting, 
are  called  forth  ;  it  is  this  which  obliges  him,  as 
Sir  Joshua  Reynolds  says  of  the  artist,  ever  to 
hold  a  balance  in  his  hand,  by  which  he  must 
decide  the  value  of  different  qualities,  that,  when 
some  fault  must  be  committed,  he  may  choose  the 
least. 

In  toning  and  harmonizing  the  colors  in  a  pic¬ 
ture,  an  artist  has  the  assistance  of  light  and 
shadow,  and  can  make  his  shades  accord  with  the 
tone  in  such  a  manner  as  to  improve  the  general 
harmony  ;  but  as  the  colors  of  the  house-painter 
and  manufacturer  are  all  liable  to  be  placed  in 
full  light,  they  must  be  toned  in  themselves,  to 
prevent  that  unnatural  crudeness  so  annoying  to 
the  eye.  How,  then,  can  we  account  for  the  con¬ 
tinued  prevalence  of  those  gaudy  paper-hangings 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


65 


which  impinge  the  most  powerful  rays  in  all  their 
vigor,  or  those  carpets  where  the  preponderance 
of  bright  yellow  and  red  attracts  the  eye,  and 
injures  the  effect  of  everything  which  is  placed 
upon  them  ?  And  if,  according  to  the  rules  which 
regulate  the  higher  branches  of  the  art,  simplicity 
of  arrangement  prevents  confusion,  where  a 
variety  of  colors  are  introduced,  the  colors,  on 
the  generality  of  such  articles,  are  most  errone¬ 
ously  arranged.  These  errors  must  proceed 
from  a  general  negligence  of  the  rules  of  har¬ 
mony.  I  do  not  mean  by  this  that  bright  and 
vivid  colors  are  always  offensive.  I  have  already 
said  that  they  add  richness  and  grandeur,  when 
used  in  their  proper  places,  and  in  proper  quan¬ 
tities  ;  but  they  should  by  no  means  cover  the 
floor  or  walls  of  an  apartment,  unless  under  very 
peculiar  circumstances.  It  may  here  be  observed, 
that  in  nil  pictures  representing  interiors,  when 
a  group  of  figures  is  introduced,  there  may  occa¬ 
sionally  appear  a  piece  of  rich  drapery  or  furni¬ 
ture,  painted  in  equally  vivid  and  bright  colors 
with  the  figures,  and  which  may,  in  a  great  mea¬ 
sure,  improve  .the  general  effect  and  harmony ; 
but  who  ever  saw,  in  a  work  of  merit,  the  colors 
on  the  wall,  or  carpet  on  the  floor  of  the  apart- 
6* 


66 


THE  LAWS  OF 


ment,  making  a  monopoly  of  attraction,  and 
causing  those  upon  the  figures  and  furniture  to 
sink  into  insignificance  ? 

There  may  be  many  excellences  in  a  picture 
which  may  compensate  for  a  defect  in  harmony  ? 
and  the  artist  may  still  retain  a  high  character 
for  drawing,  expression,  &c. ;  but  nothing  can 
excuse  a  deficiency  in  this  respect  either  in  an 
apartment  or  a  piece  of  manufacture.  If  the 
decorations  of  the  apartment  or  fabric  of  the  cloth 
be  costly,  the  defect  in  harmony  is  the  more  to 
be  regretted. 

I  have  asserted  that  a  want  of  knowledge,  or 
general  negligence  of  the  rules  in  harmony,  is 
the  cause  of  our  errors  in  decoration  and  manu¬ 
factures  ;  and  this  fact  is  still  apparent,  even  in 
regard  to  our  most  splendid  habitations  and 
palaces,  the  apartments  in  which,  although  often 
rendered  pleasing  from  the  interest  excited  by 
the  profusion  of  pictures  with  which  they  are 
hung,  too  often  display  a  want  of  harmony  in 
their  other  decorations.  This  does  not  always 
proceed  from  the  painting  alone,  but  often  from 
a  want  of  unison  between  it  and. the  furniture; 
for  each  may  be  perfect  in  its  own  way,  and  yet 
the  harshest  discord  exist  between  them. 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


67 


This  is  an  obvious  defect ;  for  when  there  is 
no  particular  tone  or  key  fixed  on  for  the  color¬ 
ing  of  an  apartment, — that  is,  when  one  part  of 
the  furniture  is  chosen  without  any  reference  to 
the  rest,  and  the  painting  done  without  any  refer¬ 
ence  to  the  furniture,  discord  is  generally  the  re¬ 
sult.  Such  an  incongruous  mixture  is,  in  com¬ 
parison  to  a  tastefully  decorated  apartment,  as 
far  as  regards  coloring,  what  a  child  produces 
with  its  first  box  of  paints  to  a  good  picture. 

A  second  and  more  common  fault  is  the  pre¬ 
dominance  of  some  bright  and  intense  color, 
either  upon  the  walls  or  floor.  It  is  evident  that 
the  predominance  of  a  bright  and  overpowering 
*  color  upon  so  large  a  space  as  the  floor  or  wall 
of  a  room,  must  injure  the  effect  of  the  finest 
furniture. 

This  great  error  often  arises  from  the  difficulty 
of  choosing  a  paper-hanging  or  carpet,  and  our 
liability  to  be  bewildered  amongst  the  multitude 
of  patterns  which  are  produced,  the  most  attrac¬ 
tive  of  which,  on  a  small  scale,  are  often,  from 
this  very  circumstance,  the  more  objectionable 
in  regard  to  their  forming  a  large  mass  in  an 
apartment ;  particularly  as  the  artists  who  design 
them  seem  to  be  regulated  by  no  fixed  princi- 


THE  LAWS  OF 


pies,  but,  from  their  repeated  deviations  from 
the  established  rules  of  harmony,  appear  to  give 
themselves  up  to  the  vague  pursuit  of  novelty 
alone. 

A  third  error  is  introducing  deep  and  pale 
colors,  which  may  have  been  well  enough  chosen 
in  regard  to  their  hues,  but  whose  particular 
degrees  of  strength  or  tint  have  not  been  at¬ 
tended  to.  Thus  the  intensity  of  one  or  more 
may  so  affect  those  which  they  were  intended  to 
balance  and  relieve  as  to  give  them  a  faded  and 
unfinished  appearance.  This  may  proceed  from 
applying  the  general  laws  without  any  regard  to 
the  more  subtle  principles  of  the  art;  for,  al¬ 
though  it  is  always  necessary  to  subdue  and 
temper  such  colors  as  are  introduced  in  large 
quantities,  yet  when  they  are  reduced  by  dilu¬ 
tion  alone  the  effect  cannot  be  good.  This  error 
is  also  very  common  in  the  coloring  of  carpets 
and  paper-hangings.  In  such  productions  the 
degree  of  intensity  of  the  individual  colors  is 
seldom  taken  into  account.  A  pale  tint  of  blue 
is  often  introduced  as  an  equivalent  to  the  richest 
orange  color,  and  sometimes  a  small  portion  of 
lilac — one  of  the  lightest  tints  of  purple: — as  a 
balancing  color  to  a  quantity  of  the  most  intense 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


69 


yellow.  This  is  inverting  the  natural  order  of 
colors  altogether,  as  will  be  more  particularly 
shown  in  the  sequel. 

There  is  a  fourth  defect,  and  rather  a  common 
one,  and  that  is,  a  want  of  the  media  already  al- 
■  luded  to,  as  uniting  and  harmonizing  an  assem¬ 
blage  of  bright  colors,  which  may,  in  other  re¬ 
spects,  be  perfectly  well  arranged ;  for  it  is  a  rule 
in  the  higher  branches  of  the  art,  that  confusion 
of  parts  of  equal  strength  should  always  be 
avoided.  A  room  of  this  description  resembles 
a  Chinese  landscape,  where  foreground  and  dis¬ 
tance  are  unceremoniously  jumbled  together. 

An  opposite  defect  to  this  has  already  been 
referred  to, — namely,  monotony,  or  a  total  want 
of  variety ; ,  for  some  are  so  afraid  of  committing 
errors  in  point  of  harmony,  that  neutral  tints 
Only  are  introduced,  and  sometimes  one  tint  of 
this  kind  alone  prevails.  Yariety  is  a  quality 
found  to  exist  in  the  most  trifling  as  well  as  in 
the  grandest  combinations  of  nature’s  coloring ; 
and  it  is,  as  already  observed,  in  uniting  and 
making  an  arrangement  of  various  colors  har¬ 
monious  and  agreeable  to  the  eye,  that  the  skill 
1  of  the  house-painter  and  manufacturer  chiefly 
consists.  It  is  this  which  produces  what  is  termed 


70 


THE  LAWS  OF 


repose  in  a  picture,  a  quality  equally  desirable  in 
the  coloring  of  an  apartment. 

The  foregoing  observations  have  been  fully 
"borne  out  by  subsequent  writers  on  this  art. 
The  writer  in  the  Athenaeum ,  already  quoted, 
observes  : —  * 

“For  our  part,  we  are  disposed  to  believe 
harmonious  coloring,  consistently  employed  in 
the  decoration  of  all  buildings — inhabited  build¬ 
ings  especially,  where  we  spend  a  great  part  of 
our  lives — not  to  be  either  slight  or  unimportant 
in  its  influence  on  the  moral  tone  of  the  inhabit¬ 
ants.  As  we  may  read  to  some  extent  the  char¬ 
acter  of  individuals  in  their  dress,  so  we  believe 
we  might  do  so,  in  the  character  of  their  dwell¬ 
ings.  Hence  a  very  dull-minded,  tasteless  people 
we  may  be  pronounced  to  have  been  during  the 
eighteenth  century.  A  room  of  bright  and  cheer¬ 
ful  appearance  surely  tends  to  dispel  gloomy  and 
melancholy  associations,  whilst  a  dark  and  dis¬ 
mal  cell  provokes  them.  Glitter  and  tawdri¬ 
ness  disturb  thoughtfulness,  whilst  quietude  in 
coloring  tends  to  suggest  it. 

“  1  Experience,7  says  Goethe,  1  teaches  us  that 
particular  colors  excite  particular  states  of  feel¬ 
ing.7  It  is  related  of  a  witty  Frenchman,  ‘II 


V, 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


71 


pretendoit  que  son  ton  de  conversation  avec 
Madame  etoit  change  depuis  qu’elle  avoit  change 
en  cramoisi  le  meuble  de  son  cabinet,  qni  etoit 
bleu.’ 

“  The  great  majority  of  domestic  apartments 
at  the  present  time,  even  in  houses  of  the  first 
class,  have  scarcely  any  marked  feature  of  deco¬ 
ration  about  them  which  indicates  taste  or  know¬ 
ledge.  They  present  a  monotonous  sameness 
and  deficiency  of  any  principles  of  taste — the 
varieties  of  character  which  occur,  from  time  to 
time,  being  regulated  only  by  the  caprices  of 
fashion.  Sometimes  every  room  you  enter  is  of 
one  color.  la  one  of  the  most  splendid  of  modern 
houses  in  the  metropolis — we  mean  in  Sutherland 
House — we  have  been  especially  struck  with  the 
monotony  of  white  and  profuse  gilding,  in  the 
forms  of  the  Louis  Quinze  period.  Sometimes 
the  rage  is  for  warm  shades  of  coloring,  at  others 
for  cold,  though  the  preponderating  taste  seems 
to  take  refuge  in  dull,  ckaracterle|g,  neutral 
coloring.  ‘  People  of  refinement  (to  quote  Goethe 
again)  ‘have  a  disinclination  to  colors.  This 
may  be  owing  partly  to  weakness  of  sight,  partly 
to  the  uncertainty  of  taste,  which  readily  takes 
refuge  in  absolute  negation.’  During  one  season 


72 


THE  LAWS  OF 


salmon  color,  as  it  is  called,- reigns  supreme; 
tlien  sage  color  succeeds  salmon;  drab  follows 
sage  or  slate ;  and  then  all  varieties  of  crimson 
put  out  the  drabs.  Each  is  employed  in  its  turn, 
without  the  slightest  reference  to  any  of  the 
questions  which  should  determine  its  appro¬ 
priateness  or  otherwise.  It  is  the  same  with  or¬ 
namental  patterns.  One  year  you  find  every 
drawing-room  papered  with  patterns  of  flowers, 
another  year  scrolls  will  be  all  the  rage.  One 
year  small  patterns  are  correct — in  the  following, 
large  only  can  be  tolerated;  and  whilst  each 
fashion  reigned,  each  was  exclusively  used. 
Crimson  walls  in  south  aspects,  leaden-colored 
ones  in  north  aspects.  Small  patterns  applied  to 
rooms  large  and  small,  and  large  patterns  to 
rooms  small  and  large.  A  like  absence  of  any 
recognized  principle  is  seen  in  the  carpets  and 
hangings.  When  crimson  walls  were  oftenest 
seen,  then  was  the  call  for  drab  and  light-colored 
carpets.  More  by  luck  than  anything  else,  it  is 
now  the  fashion  to  have  the  carpets  darker  in 
color  than  the  walls.  We  may  often  enter 
a  room  which,  preserving  something  of  each 
shifting  fashion  of  the  few  past  years,  exhibits 
a  violation  of  every  principle  of  harmonious 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


73 


decoration.  Walls  of  a  liot  and  positive  color 
in  a  room  with  a  southern  aspect — blue  ceilings 
fuller  of  color  than  the  drab  carpets,  with  curtains 
and  hangings  of  scarlet — and  perchance  a  huge 
sofa  covered  with  black  horse-hair.  Not  a  single 
thing  appropriate  or  consistent,  but  the  whole  a 
medley  of  unsuitableness.” 

To  proceed  properly  in  decoration,  the  tone  or 
key  is  the  first  point  to  be  fixed,  and  its  degree 
of  warmth  or  coldness  will  be  regulated  by  the 
use,  aspect,  and  light  of  the  apartment.  The 
next  point* is  the  style  of  coloring — whether  gay, 
sombre,  or  otherwise.  This  is  more  particularly 
regulated  by  the  use  of  the  apartment,  and  the 
sentiments  which  it  ought  to  inspire ;  for,  as  Sir 
Joshua  Reynolds  says,  in  regard  to  coloring, 
“  What  may  heighten  the  elegant  may  degrade 
the  sublime.”  Unison,  or  a  proper  combination 
of  parts,  is  the  next  consideration. 

The  tone  is  generally  fixed  by  the  choice  of 
the  furniture,  and  this  ought  to  have  particular 
reference  to  the  aspect,  because  the  furniture  of 
a  room  may  be  considered,  in  regard  to  coloring, 
in  the  same  light  as  a  key-note  in  music,  or  as 
the  principal  figures  in  a  picture,  and  the  general 
tone  must,  therefore,  depend  upon  the  colors  of 
7 


74 


THE  LAWS  OF 


I 


which  it  is  composed;  for  instance,  if  the  pre¬ 
vailing  color  be  blue,  gray,  cool  green,  or  lilac, 
the  general  tone  must  be  cool;  but  if,  on  the 
other  hand,  it  be  red,  orange,  brown,  yellow,  or 
a  warm  tint  of  green,  the  tone  must  be  warm. 
But,  as  stated  before,  there  can  be  no  pleasing 
combination  of  colors  without  variety.  This,  by 
judicious  management,  may  be  given  without  in 
the  least  interfering  with  the  tone,  for  it  is 
merely  the  general  color  of  the  furniture  which 
ought  to  fix  the  tone,  and  there  may  be  the  most 
decided  contrasts  in  its  parts,  which,  by  the  in¬ 
troduction  of  proper  medial  hues  throughout  the 
room,  can  be  reconciled  and  united.  Apartments 
lighted  from  the  south  and  west,  particularly  in 
a  summer  residence,  should  be  cool  in  their 
coloring;  but  the  apartments  of  a  town  house 
ought  all  to  approach  towards  a  warm  tone ;  as 
also  such  apartments  as  are  lighted  from  the 
north  and  east  of  a  country  residence. 

When  the  tone  of  an  apartment  is  therefore 
fixed,  first  by  the  aspect  and  then  by  the  choice 
of  the  furniture,  it  is  the  business  of  the  house- 
painter  to  introduce  such  tints  upon  the  ceiling, 
walls,  and  wood- work  as  will  unite  the  whole  in 
perfect  harmony.  This,  as  I  have  already  ob- 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


75 


served,  is  a  difficult  task :  the  colors  of  the  furni¬ 
ture  may  be  arranged  by  a  general  knowledge  of 
the  laws  of  harmony,  but  the  painter’s  part  can¬ 
not  be  properly  added  without  the  closest  atten¬ 
tion  to  the  more  subtle  operations  of  those  laws. 

The  style  of  coloring  is  the  next  point  to  be 
fixed,  and  will  depend  entirely  on  the  use  of  the 
apartment.  In  a  drawing-room,  vivacity,  gayety, 
and  light  cheerfulness,  should  characterize  the 
coloring.  This  is  produced  by  the  introduction 
of  tints  of  brilliant  colors,  with  a  considerable 
degree  of  contrast  and  gliding ;  but  the  brightest 
colors  and  strongest  contrasts  should  be  upon 
the  furniture,  the  effect  of  which  will  derive  ad¬ 
ditional  value  and  brilliancy  from  the  walls  be¬ 
ing  kept  in  due  subordination,  although,  at  the 
same  time,  partaking  of  the  general  liveliness. 

The  characteristic  coloring  of  a  dining-room 
should  be  warm,  rich,  and  substantial ;  and  where 
contrasts  are  introduced,  they  should  not  be 
vivid.  This  style  of  coloring  will  be  found  to 
correspond  best  with  the  massive  description  of 
the  furniture:  gilding,  unless  in  very  small 
quantities  for  the  sake  of  relief,  or  to  carry  off 
the  effect  of  picture-frames,  should  be  avoided. 

Breakfast  parlors  ought  to  be  painted  in  a 


76 


THE  LAWS  OF 


medial  style,  between  that  of  a  drawing-room 
and  dining-room. 

The  most  appropriate  style  of  coloring  for 
libraries  is  rich  and  grave,  and  no  higher  color¬ 
ing  shonld  be  employed  than  is  necessary  to  give 
the  effect  of  grandeur,  and  unite  the  painting  with 
the  richness  produced  by  the  bookbinder’s  art. 
This  can  scarcely  be  done  by  neutral  hues ;  but 
care  should  be  taken  not  to  disturb  the  quietness 
yffiich  ought  to  characterize  the  coloring  of  all 
apartments  of  this  description  by  any  masses  of 
vivid  color. 

In  bed-rooms,  a  light,  cleanly,  and  cheerful 
style  of  coloring  is  the  most  appropriate.  A 
greater  degree  of  contrast  may  be  here  admitted 
between  the  room  and  its  furniture  than  in  any 
other  apartment,  as  the  bed  and  window- curtains 
form  a  sufficient  mass  to  balance  a  tint  of  equal 
intensity  upon  the  walls.  There  may,  also,  for 
the  same  reason,  be  admitted  gayer  and  brighter 
colors  upon  the  carpet. 

Staircases,  lobbies,  and  vestibules,  should  all  be 
rather  of  a  cool  tone,  and  the  style  of  the  color 
should  be  simple  and  free  of  contrast.  The 
effect  to  be  produced  is  that  of  architectural 
grandeur,  which  owes  its  beauty  more  to  the 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


77 


effect  of  light  and  shadow  than  to  any  arrange¬ 
ment  of  colors;  yet  they  ought  not  to  be  so 
entirely  free  from  color  as  the  exterior  of  a 
mansion,  but  should  be  in  coloring  what  they 
are  in  use — a  link  between  exterior  simplicity 
and  interior  richness. 

Staircases  and  lobbies  being  made  cool  in 
tone,  and  simple  in  the  style  of  their  coloring, 
will  much  improve  the  effect  of  the  apartments 
which  enter  from  them.  w 

It  will  be  observed,  that  in  the  foregoing  obser¬ 
vations  I  have  taken  notice  only  of  such  apart¬ 
ments  as  are  to  be  found  in  the  town  or  country 
residences  of  gentlemen  of  modern  fortune ; 
and,  although,  the  general  principles  I  have 
endeavored  to  elucidate  are  equally  applicable 
to  the  palace  and  the  cottage,  yet,  in  the  higher 
class  of  edifices,  we  find  grand  staircases,  cor¬ 
ridors,  saloons,  &c.,  requiring  in  every  individual 
case  a  peculiar  mode  of  treatment,  for  which  it 
is  impossible  to  lay  down  any  general  rules. 


7* 


78 


THE  LAWS  OF 


ON  COLORS  INDIVIDUALLY. 

White  is  the  full  and  unmodified  action  of 
£hat  atomic  motion  which  is,  agreeably  to  the 
hypothesis  already  explained,  assumed  to  be  the 
cause  of  light  being  reflected  from  the  surface  of 
bodies,  as  black  is  understood  to  be  the  total  in¬ 
terruption  of  that  motion.  White  is  therefore 
naturally  contrasted  by  black.  The  first  modifi¬ 
cation  of  this  atomic  motion  that  has  a  distinc¬ 
tive  character,  as  a  primary  element  in  the  chro¬ 
matic  series,  is  that  which  produces  yellow — -a 
less  vigorous  action — because  the  presence  of 
color  implies  shade,  and  shade  is  a  modification 
of  light  towards  darkness.  Yellow  is,  therefore, 
the  melodizing  color  to  white  in  the  primary 
series.  White  harmonizes  in  conjunction  and 
opposition  with  all  colors.  In  conjunction,  it 
produces  every  variety  of  tint,  and  in  opposition 
it  contrasts  in  various  degrees  of  power,  in  pro- 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


79 


portion  as  the  principle  of  shade  or  of  color  is 
opposed  to  it.  For  instance,  when  opposed  to 
blue,  the  contrast  is  less  powerful  than  that 
produced  by  its  opposition  to  black,  but  more 
pleasing,  because  the  coldness  of  the  blue  thus 
imparts  a  warmth  of  tone  to  the  white,  however 
colorless  it  may  have  appeared  previously  to  its 
being  placed  in  juxtaposition  with  the  blue.  In 
like  manner,  white  appears  of  a  cool  tone  when 
contrasted  with  red,  but  pure  yellow,  from  bein^ 
its  melodizing  color,  does  not  affect  its  tone  by 
contrast.  White,  from  being  the  representative 
of  light,  has  a  gay  and  cheerful  effect  upon  the 
eye. 

Popularly,  there  are  various  kinds  of  white- 

under  the  names,  cream-white,  French-white, 

pearl-white — and  even  the  terms  reddisffwhite 

and  bluish-white  are  sometimes  used.  But  this 

is  a  false  nomenclature,  for  all  those  whites  are 
'  * 

tints  of  specific  colors,  and  they  ought  to  be 
named  as  such.  Cream-white,  for  instance,  is  a 
light  tint  of  yellowish  orange-color;  French- 
white — a  light  tint  of  reddish  purple ;  and  pearl- 
white — a  light  tint  of  bluish  purple.  When  a 
light  tint  of  any  color  is  placed  beside  the  color 
itself  in  an  intense  state,  the  tint  will  certainly 


80 


THE  LAWS  OF 


appear  a  pure  white,  but  if  placed  against  pure 
white,  the  color  with  which  it  is  tinged  will 
appear,  and  it  is,  therefore,  a  tint  of  that  color. 
Haying,  however,  elsewhere  entered  into  the 
subject  of  nomenclature  fully,  and  wishing  to 
retain  the  original  simplicity  of  this  treatise  as 
much  as  possible,  I  shall  continue,  in  this  Part, 
the  same  nomenclature  adopted  in  the  former 
editions. 

French-white  and  cream- white  are  the  only 
two  whites  which  are  generally  understood,  or 
used  in  decorations  besides  the  purest  white. 
The  first  of  these  being  of  all  tints  the  most 
aerial,  is  often  employed  in  house-painting,  and 
when  the  situation,  furnishing,  and  character  of 
an  apartment  are  properly  adapted,  it  has  an 
extremely  pleasing  effect.  Either  French- white, 
or  cream- white,  may  be  made  the  prevailing 
color  of  a  drawing-room  in  a  country  residence, 
and  where  the  hangings  and  furniture  are  com¬ 
posed  of  light  blue,  or  any  other  delicate  tint 
of  silk,  satin-wood,  various  light  marbles,  and 
gilding,  the  most  lively  and  cheerful  effect 
imaginable  is  produced.  It  may  be  requisite 
to  observe,  that  French-white,  when  used  on 
walls,  should  be  kept  rather  low  in  tone,  so  as 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


81 


not  to  interfere  with  the  effect  of  the  furniture. 
This  peculiar  tint  can  only  be  introduced  when 
all  the  other  tints  are  light  and  cool  in  tone,  as 
any  quantity  intense  or  rich  coloring  com¬ 
pletely  subdues  it ;  and  where  gilding  forms  part 
of  the  arrangement,  a  little  additional  warmth 
should  be  given  to  its  tone.  The  same  may  be 
said  of  pure  white — all  colors  brought  into 
contact  with  it  should  be  light  and  cool,  amongst 
which  tints  of  gray  and  green  are  the  most 
suitable.  Yery  light  yellow,  of  the  tint  of  the 
primrose,  forms  also  a  pleasing  melody  with  pure 
white. 

In  rooms  where  white  and  other  cool  tints 
predominate  upon  the  walls  and  wood- work,  the 
furniture  should  be  of  an  equally  light  descrip¬ 
tion.  Bamboo  and  satin-wood  are  the  best  woods. 
The  same  considerations  should  regulate  the 
choice  of  the  carpet  and  curtains.  White,  not 
many  years  ago,  was  the  only  color  in  use  for 
the  wood- work  of  rooms  of  every  description: 
it  has  now  almost  entirely  given  way  to  shades 
of  various  colors,  and  imitations  of  the  finer 
kinds  of  woods.  It  is  still,  however,  adopted  for 
bed-rooms,  particularly  in  summer  residences, 
where  its  light,  cheerful,  and  cleanly  effect  is 


82 


THE  LAWS  OF 


extremely  pleasing,  wlien  not  destroyed  by  tbe 
introduction  of  strong  and  deep  colors. 

A  south  light  is  the  best  for  white,  and  all 
such  colors  and  furniture  as  assimilate  to  it. 
When  it  is  the  predominating  color  in  a  room 
lighted  from  the  north,  it  ought  to  approach 
slightly  towards  a  cream-color,  so  as  to  counter¬ 
act  as  much  as  possible  the  cold  reflection  of  such 
a  light. 

In  patterns  for  colored  manufactures,  pure 
white  ought  not  to  be  used  along  with  intense  and 
rich  colors,  unless  melodized  by  light  and  deli¬ 
cate  tints.  Indeed,  it  ought,  in  manufactures  as 
in  decoration,  only  to  be  used  where  the  char¬ 
acter  of  the  arrangement  is  of  a  light  and  deli¬ 
cate  nature.  Its  effect  in  arrangements  of  deep, 
rich,  and  intense  colors,  is  generally  harsh  and 
spotty.  When  employed  as  a  groundwork  for  a 
carpet,  it  ought  to  be,  to  a  certain  extent,  reduced 
in  intensity,  by  which  great  additional  effect  will 
be  given  to  the  tints  with  which  the  pattern  is 
colored.  When  the  general  tone  of  a  pattern 
of  this  description  is  warm, — that  is,  where  red 
and  yellow  prevail,  the  white  ought  to  be  slightly 
tinged  towards  a  cream-color.  On  the  other 
hand,  when  the  tone  is  cool,  blue  or  green  being 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


83 


the  prevailing  color,  it  may  be  tinged  towards 
purple  or  gray.  When  white,  however,  is  used, 
not  as  the  medium  to  an  arrangement,  but  as  a 
contrasting  color  to  any  particular  tint,  it  ought 
to  be  toned  with  the  opposite  hue. 

Yellow,  of  the  three  primaries,  partakes  most 
of  the  nature  of  white,  being  the  lightest  of  all 
decided  colors,  and  the  brightest  on  the  pris¬ 
matic  spectrum:  it  is  neither  a  warm  nor  a  cold 
color.  Its  contrasting  color  is  purple,  a  com¬ 
pound  of  the  other  two  primaries.  It  combines 
with  red  in  producing  orange-color,  and  when 
compounded  with  blue,  it  produces  green.  These 
are,  therefore,  its  melodizing  colors.  It  is  the  ' 
most  powerful  of  the  positive  colors  as  to  light, 
and  consequently  the  least  agreeable  to  the  eye 
when  unaccompanied,  or  when  predominating  in 
a  pure  state.  Being  the  most  allied  to  light  of 
the  positive  colors,  it,  next  to  white,  forms  the 
most  powerful  contrast  to  black.  There  are  • 
many  varieties  of  yellow  in  the  popular  nomen¬ 
clature  of  colors:  but  what  is  here  meant  by 
yellow  is  the  color  of  the  yellow  jasmyn,  or  most 
intense  lemon  color.  Yellow,  of  course,  forms 


84 


THE  LAWS  OF 


a  component  part  of  all  the  tertiary  or  neutral 
hues,  either  in  predominance  or  subordination. 

The  tertiary  in  which  it  is  the  archeus  or 
ruling  color  is  that  commonly  called  citron,  but 
more  properly  yellow-hue,  which  being  a  com¬ 
pound  of  orange  and  green,  the  two  secondaries 
into  which  yellow  enters,  has  a  greater  proportion 
of  that  color  than  either  of  the  other  two  tertiaries. 
Citron,  or  yellow-hue,  is- of  itself  a  soft  and  pleas¬ 
ing  color  to  the  eye,  and  is  the  lightest  of  all  the 
distinct  hues  arising  out  of  the  treble  combina¬ 
tion  of  the  primaries.  It  is  very  useful  as  a 
contrasting  color  amongst  low  tones  of  purple 
and  crimson.  In  tracing  yellow  still  further 
down  in  the  scale,  the  next  understood  color  in 
which  it  predominates  is  the  semi-neutral  hue, 
brown,  or  orange-hue — a  most  efficient  color  in 
all  the  low  parts  of  every  warm-toned  arrange¬ 
ment. 

The  upper  limb  of  the  colored  diagram  which 
faces  the  title-page  exhibits  yellow  in  its  various 
combinations  and  gradations  of  hue  down  to 
black.  There  are,  of  course,  countless  interme¬ 
diate  hues  and  shades  between  any  two  of  those 
upon  the  diagram. 

In  artificial  lights,  pure  yellow  apparently 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


85 


loses  much  of  its  intensity,  because  it  cannot  be 
easily  distinguished  from  white.  This  occurs 
from  all  such  lights  being  less  or  more  of  a  yel¬ 
low  tone,  and  consequently,  diffusing  this  color 
over  all  objects  within  their  influence:  white 
thereby  becoming  yellow,  and  yellow  remaining 
unaltered. 

In  decoration,  pure  yellow  cannot  be  employed 
in  large  masses,  but  merely  as  a  heightening 
color ;  yet  light  tints  of  yellow  have  a  very 
pleasing  effect  in  bedrooms,  especially  such  as 
are  lighted  from -the  north  and  east,  and  form  an 
agreeable  arrangement  with  white,  lilac,  or  chintz 
furniture.  They  have  also  the  advantage  of  be¬ 
ing  easily  lighted,  and  thereby  appearing  very 
cheerful  at  night. 

There  is  no  color  that  requires  more  manage¬ 
ment  than  yellow  in  colored  manufactures,  yet  in 
these  it  is  almost  always  employed  in  its  purest 
and  brightest  tones :  while  the  other  colors, 
which,  according  to  their  relative  powers,  ought 
to  be  of  greater  intensity,  are  very  generally 
much  weaker.  Whether  this  proceeds  fr^m  the 
ease  with  which  it  is  produced  in  dyeing,  or  from 
a  desire  to  produce  a  striking  effect,  it  is  hard  to 
say,  but  fts  abuse  in  this  way  must  be  apparent 
8 


86 


THE  LAWS  OF 


to  all  people  of  taste  who  have  paid  any  atten¬ 
tion  to  the  matter.  Yellow  is,  however,  in  its 
various  tints  and  combinations,  of  the  greatest 
value  in  producing  brilliancy  and  richness,  as 
will  be  afterwards  shown. 

Some  of  Goethe’s  remarks  upon  yellow,  and 
some  of  the  colors  that  proceed  from  it,  are  cu¬ 
rious.  He  says :  “  When  a  yellow  color  is  com¬ 
municated  to  dull  and  coarse  surfaces,  such  as 
common  cloth,  felt,  or  the  like,  on  which  it  does 
not  appear  with  full  energy,  the  disagreeable 
effect  is  apparent.  By  a  slight  and  scarcely  per¬ 
ceptible  change,  the  beautiful  impression  of  fire 
*  and  gold  is  transformed* into  one  not  undeserving 
the  epithet  foul,  and  the  color  of  harmony  and 
joy  reversed  to  that  of  ignominy  and  aversion. 

To  this  impression  the  yellow  hats  of  bankrupts,  i 
and  the  yellow  circles  on  the  mantles  of  Jews, 
may  have  owed  their  origin.  As  no  color  can 
be  considered  as  stationary,  so  we  can  very  easily 
augment  yellow  into  reddish  by  condensing  or 
darkening  it.  The  color  increases  in  energy, 
and  appears  in  red-yellow  more  powerful  and 
splendid.  All  that  we  have  said  of  yellow  is 
applicable  here  in  a  higher  degree.  The  red- 
yellow  gives  an  impression  of  warmth  and  glad- 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


87 


ness,  since  it  represents  the  hue  of  the  intense 
glow  of  fire,  and  of  the  milder  radiance  of  the 
setting  sun.  Hence  it  is  agreeable  around  us ; 
and  again,  as  clothing,  in  greater  or  less  de- 
grees  is  cheerful  and  magnificent.  A  slight 
tendency  to  red  immediately  gives  a  new  cha¬ 
racter  to  yellow ;  and  while  the  English  and 
Germans  content  themselves  with  pale-yellow 
colors  in  leather,  the  French,  as  Costel  has  re¬ 
marked,  prefer  a  yellow  enhanced  to  red ;  in¬ 
deed,  in  general,  everything  in  color  is  agreeable 
which  belongs  to  the  active  side.  As  a  pure 
yellow  passes  very  easily  to  red-yellow,  so  the 
deepening  of  this'  last  to  yellow-red  is  not  to 
be  arrested.  The  agreeable,  cheerful  sensation 
which  red-yellow  excites,  increases  to  an  in¬ 
tolerably  painful  impression  in  bright  yellow- 
red.  The  active  side  is  here  in  its  highest  en¬ 
ergy  ;  and  it  is  not  to  be  wondered  at  that 
impetuous,  robust,  uneducated  men  should  be 
especially  pleased  with  this  color.  Among  sav¬ 
age  nations  the  inclination  for  it  has  been  uni¬ 
versally  remarked ;  and  when  children,  left  to 
themselves,  begin  to  use  tints,  they  never  spare 
vermilion  and  minium.  In  looking  steadfastly 
at  a  perfectly  yellow-red  surface,  the  color  seems 


88 


THE  LAWS  OF 


actually  to  penetrate  the  organ.  It  produces  an 
extreme  excitement,  and  still  acts  thus  when 
somewhat  darkened.  A  yellow-red  cloth  dis¬ 
turbs  and  enrages  animals.  I  have  known  men 
of  education  to  whom  its  effect  was  intolerable, 
if  they  chanced  to  see  a  person  dressed  in  a  scar¬ 
let  cloak,  on  a  gray,  cloudy  day.” 

It  will  here  be  observed  that  Groethe  terms 
what  we  call  orange-color,  red-yellow,  and  what 
we  call  scarlet,  yellow-red,  which  is,  certainly,  a 
more  correct  nomenclature. 

Orange-color  is  the  next  color  in  the  series ; 
it  is  a  compound  of  yellow  and  red, a in  equal  pro¬ 
portions.  Between  these  two  colors  it  appears 
in  the  prismatic  spectrum,  rainbow,  and  other 
natural  phenomena;  they  may,  therefore,  be 
termed  its  melodizing  colors.  Its  contrasting 
color  is  blue.  Orange- color  is  the  extreme  point 
of  warmth  in  coloring-;  because  the  red,  in  which 
exists  the  principle  of  warmth,  is  lighted  up  by 
a  color  whose  nature  does  not  reduce  this  warmth, 
but,  by  adding  light  to  it,  gives  it  more  intensity. 
Therefore,  as  blue  embodies  the  principle  of  cold¬ 
ness  of  tone,  and  has  least  light  of  any  decided 
color,  the  contrast  between  orange  and  blue  is 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


89 


more  powerful  than  that  between  any  other  two 
colors.  In  its  combination  with  green,  orange 
produces  the  tertiary  citron,  and  with  purple  the 
tertiary  russet. 

Although  orange-color  is  perhaps  the  most 
powerful  pf  all  colors,  yet  it  possesses  a  mellow¬ 
ness  and  richness  which  renders  it  one  of  the 
most  effective  in  all  general  arrangements.  It 
should,  however,  next  to  yellow,  be  employed 
with  a ( very  sparing  hand;  for  it  is,  as  well  as 
that  primary  and  red,  offensive  to  the  eye  when 
viewed  alone,  and  unresolved  by  a  proper  pro¬ 
portion  of  its  contrasting  and  melodizing  colors 
and  hues.  The  various  beautiful  tints  produced 
by  the  dilution  of  orange  are  the  most  useful  in 
heightening  all  ornamental  coloring,  amongst 
which  that  termed  gold-color  is  pre-eminent. 
Orange-color,  like  the  other  two  secondaries,  has 
great  variety  of  hue,  according  to  the  predomi¬ 
nance  of  either  of  its  component  parts.  As  it 
advances  towards  yellow,  by  a  predominance  of 
that  color  in  its  mixture,  pure  blue  can  no  longer 
be  employed  as  a  perfect  contrast  or  neutralizing 
color,  but  hues  of  purple,  advancing  towards  the 
perfect  state  of  that  color  in  the  same  ratio  as  the 
orange-color  advances  towards  yellow, 

8* 


90 


THE  LAWS  OF 


On  the  other  hand,  when  orange-color  recedes 
towards  red,  by  a  subordination  of  yellow  in  its 
composition,  green,  in  its  various  hues,  becomes 
the  perfect  contrasting  color ;  and  as  the  red 
predominates  in  the  orange-color,  so  ought  the 
green  to  approach  towards  its  perfect  of  prismatic 
purity.  It  is  not,  however,  always  necessary  or 
desirable  that  colors  employed  as  harmonizing 
accompaniments  to  one  another  should  be  of 
equal  power,  although  it  is  most  essential  to  the 
colorist  to  know  the  proper  method  of  making 
them  so. 

Suppose  orange-color  to  be  the  key  adopted 
for  an  arrangement  of  colors,  either  in  the  decora¬ 
tion  of  an  apartment,  or  imthe  design  of  a  carpet, 
or  other  piece  of  manufacture,  the  blue  ought  to 
be  subordinate,  either  in  intensity  ‘  or  quantity ; 
and  this  subordination  in  intensity  ought  to  be 
in  shade  rather  than  tint,  or  by  neutralizing  the 
blue  by  the  admixture  of  a  small  portion  of 
orange- color. 

In  the  medial  colors  employed  in  an  arrange¬ 
ment  of  this  character,  the  deep  rich  tones  of 
russet,  citron,  and  brown,  or,  more  properly,  red- 
hue,  yellow-hue,  and  orange-hue,  ought  to  pre¬ 
dominate,  relieved  occasionally  by  the  deepest 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


91 


shades  of  indigo  or  deep  purplish  blue.  Black 
and  white  are  both  out  of  tone  in  such  an  arrange¬ 
ment,  especially  the  latter. 

Pure  orange-color,  from  its  great  power,  is 
not  often  employed  in  decoration,  yet  many 
of  its  hues  are  the  best  adapted  for  window- 
curtains,  chair -seats,  and  other  furniture,  where 
,  gorgeousness  and  splendor  are  desirable.  The 
gold  and  giraffe  hues  so  employed,  along  with 
pure  emerald-green  on  the  walls,  produce  when 
properly  harmonized  by  their  accompaniments, 
one  of  the  most  pleasing  effects  in  ordinary 
decoration.  In  this  case,  however,  the  green  is 
the  ruling  color,  and  such  an  arrangement  will 
therefore  admit  of  all  such  hues,  shades,  and  tints 
being  introduced  as  harmonize  with  that  color. 

Red  is  the  third  in  the  chromatic  series,  and 
second  of  the  primaries.  It  is  the  most  positive 
of  all  colors ;  holding  the  middle  station  between 
yellow,  which  is  most  allied  to  light,  and  blue, 
which  is  most  allied  to  shade — it  is  of  all  colors 
the  most  powerful.  The  secondaries  with  which 
it  melodizes  in  series  are,  of  course,  orange  and 
purple,  which  are  produced  by  its  combinations 
with  the  other  two  primaries.  Its  contrasting 


92 


THE  LAWS  OF 


color  is  green,  a  compound  of  yellow  and  blue, 
in  equal  portions  as  to  power.  Red  is  decidedly 
a  warm  color,  and,  to  a  certain  extent,  communi¬ 
cates  this  quality  to  every  color  or  bue  into  which 
it  enters. 

The  effect  of  warmth  is  most  apparent  in  its 
combinations  with  yellow,  for  in  those  with  blue 
it  becomes  more*,  cool  and  retiring.  From  the 
medial  situation  of  red,  and  from  its  power  in 
subduing  the  effect  of  such  colors  as  enter,  in 
minute  proportion,  into  combination  with  it,  its 
name  is  very  indiscriminately  applied.  The  first 
decided  or  specific  color  produced  in  its  approach 
towards  yellow  is  scarlet,  called  by  Goethe 
yellow-red,  and  in  its  approach  towards  purple 
it  produces  the  most  splendid  of  all  its  various 
tones — crimson.  But  before  arriving  at  either 
of  these  understood  colors,  there  are  an  immense 
variety  of  tones,  to  all  of  which  the  general  term 
red  is  commonly  applied.  It  is  not  easy  to  de¬ 
scribe  what  is  meant  by  pure  red ;  probably  the 
most  intense  geranium- color  is  the  nearest  approx¬ 
imation  generally  understood.  That  which  I 
have  given  upon  the  diagram  is  the  nearest  I 
could  produce  by  a  pigment,  yet  it  is  far  from 
being  perfect. 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


93 


The  tertiary  in  which  red  predominates  is 
russet,  or  red-hue,  a  medial  hue  between  purple 
and  orange,  and  consequently  haying  a  double 
occurrence  of  red  in  its  composition ;  therefore, 
it  is  the  most  positive  and  warm  of  the  hues.  It 
is  of  great  power  and  value  in  all  the  deep  parts 
of  any  warm-toned  arrangement,  as  a  contrasting 
color  to  the  deep  hues  of  ^reen,  necessarily 
brought  in  as  relieving  colors.  The  semi-neutral 
marone,  or  purple-hue,  is  the  next  understood 
hue  in  its  descent  to  black.  This  hue  is  the 
most  useful  of  all  semi-neutrals  in  such  arrange¬ 
ments  as  are  best  adapted  for  patterns  of  carpets, 
and  other  variously  colored  manufactures.  It  is 
deep  and  clear,  and  ‘although  allied  to  red,  is 
sufficiently  cool  to  admit  of  its  being  used  as  the 
deepest  shade  in  such  arrangements  as  have  a 
predominance  of  cool-toned  colors. 

From  the  positive  nature  of  red,  there  is  no 
color  that  requires  more  toning,  and  management, 
when  exhibited  in  large  masses,  either  in  decora¬ 
tion  or  in  variously  colored  manufacture.  The 
effect  of  red  individually  being  striking  and 
powerful,  it  has,  like  yellow,  been  much  too 
indiscriminately  employed.  We  have  only  to 
look  at  nature  for  the  proper  use  of  this  color. 


94 


THE  LAWS  OF 


W e  stall  there  see  that"  red  seldom  appears  in  its 
full  intensity,  and  when  it  does  so,  it  is  at  that 
season  when  its  effect  is  balanced  and  neutralized 
by  the  general  verdure  which  clothes  the  earth. 
Eed,  however,  in  nature  as  in  art,  is  indispensa¬ 
ble  in  producing,  by  combination ,-that  variety  of 
hue  so  essential  to  the  effect  of  every  arrange¬ 
ment  of  colors.  "The  landscape  painter  knows 
well  that  neither  sky,  water,  nor  foliage,  can  be 
successfully  imitated  without  the  introduction  of 
this  color. 

Pure  red,  and  its  various  approximations 
towards  scarlet,  are  too  violent  and  obstrusive 
to  be  used  in  large  masses,  either  in  decoration 
or  in  any  general  arrangements  of  colors  upon  a 
piece  of  manufacture,  unless  under  very  peculiar 
circumstances.  It  forms,  however,  like  orange, 
an  excellent  leading  color  or  key-note.  On  all 
such  occasions,  its  contrasting  color,  green,  ought 
to  be  tempered  by  being  toned  towards  olive: 
bright  green,  if  employed  at  all,  ought  to  be  used 
in  very  small  quantities.  The  tertiaries  ought 
generally  to  be  those  in  which  red  predominates, 
and  blue  is  subordinate  to  yellow,  and  these 
should  be  relieved  by  deep  rich  hues  of  green. 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


95 


A  small  proportion  of  gold-color  adds  brilliancy 
and  effect  to  arrangements  of  this  description. 

There  is  an  exception,  however,  to  this  rule  in 
decoration-;  some  rooms  are  so  lighted  that  the 
direct  rays  are  entirely  thrown  upon  the  floor, 
and  the  walls  left  comparatively  in  shade.  In 
cases  of  this  kind,  I  have  known  a  bright  scarlet 
upon  the  wall  produce  an  excellent  effect,  the 
want  of  direct  light  preventing  it  from  obtrud¬ 
ing  upon  the  eye.  In  such  cases  deep-toned 
colors  ought  to  predominate  on  the  carpet. 
Gilding  is  of  much  importance  in  melodizing 
and  heightening  the  effect  of  apartments  deco¬ 
rated  in  this  style. 

Crimson  is,  of  all  the  tones  arising  from  the 
mellowing  of  the  primary  red,  the  most  gorgeous 
and  useful  as  a  leading  color.  The  green  which 
relieves  it  best  is  that  which  approaches  the  cit¬ 
ron  hue.  This  color,  from  the  splendid  and  rich 
effect  which  it  always  produces,  and  from  its 
being,  of  all  the  tones  of  red,  the  most  cool  and 
mellow,  is  much  used  in  internal  decoration.  It 
is  also,  when  of  a  proper  shade  and  tone,  an 
excellent  ground  for  pictures,  and  associates  well 
with  gilding.  This  latter  quality  proceeds  from 
the  crimson  partaking,  in  a  small  degree,  of  the 


@f>  THE  LAWS  OF 

property  of  purple  as  well  as  red — the  one  being 
the  contrasting  color  to  yellow,  and  the  other 
the  melodizing  color  to  orange;  the  color  of 
gold,  in  its  lights  and  shadows,  producing  these 
two. 

From  these  circumstances,  crimson,  of  a  proper 
depth  and  hue,  has  been  generally  adopted  as  a 
•'  ground  for  pictures,  by  the  proprietors  of  those 
splendid  mansions  where  the  finest  collections 
are  to  be  seen.  This  has  led  to  its  adoption  in 
general;  but,  from  the  great  variety  of  hues 
which  are  produced  under  this  name,  many 
glaring  errors,  have  arisen.  Most  of  the  flocked 
papers  so  much  in  use,  and  erroneously  called 
crimson,  partake  more  of  the  tone  of  scarlet, 
while  others  are  crimson  on  the  pattern,  with  a 
tint  of  pink  on  the  ground.  This  often  arises 
from  the  pattern  being  of  one  material  and  the 
ground  of  another ;  and  even  when  the  ground 
and  pattern  are  at  first  the  same,  the  former  from 
its  being  a  thin  wash  of  water-color  upon  white 
paper,  is  soon  reduced  to  a  pale  pink— while  the 
pattern,  from  its  facility  in  collecting  dust,  be¬ 
comes  a  dark  sombre  red. 

From  crimson  proceeds  that  beautiful  series 
of  tints  called  pinks  or  rose -colors,  which  are  so 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


97 


essential  as  heightening  reds  in  all  cool-toned 
arrangements. 

There  are  various  other  denominations  of  red, 
but  they  are  all,  with  the  exception  of  the  purest 
color,  compounds  of  two  or  all  of  the  primaries. 

Purple  lies  next  in  series  to  red,  of  which  . 
color  and  blue  it  is  composed,  in  equal  propor¬ 
tions  as  to  power.  In  this  state  of  intensity  it 
forms  the  proper  contrasting  or  neutralizing 
color  to  pure  yellow.  The  two  primaries  of  * 
which  it  is  compoifiided  are  its  melodizing 
colors.  Although  red  be  one  of  its  component 
parts,  it  is  not  a  positively  warm  color,  and  is 
very  retiring  in  effect:  being  also  the  darkest 
of  the  secondary  colors,  it  bears  the  nearest  re¬ 
lation  to  black  or  shade,  as  its  contrasting  color, 
yellow,  does  to  white  or  light.  From  these 
qualities,  purple  is  a  pleasing  color  to  the  eye, 
in  which  respect  it  is  second  only  to  green.  In 
its  combination  with  green  it  produces  that  soft 
and  useful  tertiary  color  called  olive,  or  blue- 
hue,  &nd  with  orange  the  most  powerful  of  this 
class,  russet,  or  red-hue. 

Purple  has,  like  the  other  compound  colors, 
various  tones,  but  these  are  bounded  in  its  ap- 
9 


98 


THE  LAWS  OP 


proach  towards  red  by  crimson,  and  towards 
blue  by  indigo.  Its  tints  haye  also  popular 
names  peculiar  to  themselves,  such  as  lilac, 
peach-blossom,  and  several  others. 

Purple  is  not  much  used  as  a  leading  color  in 
decoration,  which,  I  believe,  arises  from  its  bad 
effect  in  artificial  light.  It  has  been  already 
noticed,  that  all  artificial  lights,  used  for  econo¬ 
mic  purposes,  are  less  or  more  of  a  warm  and 
yellow  tone,  as  any  one  may  observe  in  viewing 
the  flame  of  a  candle  or  gas-lamp  in  daylight. 
Yellow  being  the  natural  contrast  to  purple,  and 
being  thus  diffused  over  it,  neutralizes  and  in¬ 
jures  its  effect.  Indeed,  all  cool  colors  are  less 
or  more  injured  by  the  effect  of  such  lights, 
while  warm  colors,  from  their  being  allied  to 
red,  are  improved  in  brilliancy.  The  diagram 
facing  the  title,  by  being  viewed  in  clear  day¬ 
light,  and  immediately  after  in  candlelight,  will 
illustrate  this  fact  in  a  sufficiently  satisfactory 
manner.  This  effect  of  artificial  light  is  worthy 
of  particular  attention,  for  it  is  not  only  the  posi¬ 
tive  color  upon  which  it  is  produced,  but  upon 
compound  hues  of  every  description,  according 
to  the  predominance  of  one  or  other  of  the  pri¬ 
maries  in  their  composition. 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


99 


Purple  may  be  used  in  large  quantities  in  any 
general  arrangement,  especially  when  of  a  cool 
tone.  In  the  richest  patterns  of  carpets,  shawls, 
and  such  like  pieces  of  manufacture,  its  deepest 
hues  are  invaluable.  Its  powers  of  contrast  to 
all  the  warm  tones  of  yellow  gives  them  ad¬ 
ditional  warmth  and  brilliancy,  while  its  natural 
clearness  prevents  it  from  ever  appearing  dusky 
or  heavy,  except  under  the  influence  of  artificial 
light. 

Blue  is  the  third  »of  the  primary  colors,  and 
fifth  of  the  chromatic  series.  It  is,  of  the  pri¬ 
maries,  the  nearest  in  relation  to  shade,  as  yellow 
is  to  light.  It  is  the  only  absolutely  cool  color, 
and  communicates  this  quality  to  all  hues  into 
the  combination  of  which  it  enters.  The  con¬ 
trasting  color  to  blue  is  the  secondary  orange, 
and  its  melodizing  colors  in  series,  green  and 
purple ;  with  the  former  of  which,  however,  it  is 
more  discordant  than  either  of  the  other  two 
primaries  are  with  either  of  their  melodizing 
colors.  This  gives  rise  to  the  necessity  of  a 
seventh  color  of  a  neutral  description,  which 
ought  generally  to  be  interposed  between  these 
two  colors  when  in  their  perfect  state  of  inten- 


100 


THE  LAWS  OF 


sity.  This  neutral  hue  is  gray,  the  medium 
between  warmth  and  coolness,  and  between  light 
and  shade,  or  black  and  white. 

The  tertiary  color  olive,  or  blue-hue,  from 
being  the  medial  hue  between  purple  and  green, 
and  arising  from  their  combination,  has  a  pre¬ 
dominance  of  blue  in  its  composition,  and  is, 
therefore,  the  tertiary  that  first  occurs  in  the 
progress  of  blue  to  black,  or  to  negation  in  shade. 

Olive,  or  blue-hue,  individually  considered,  is 
soft  and  unassuming,  and  is  of  great  use  in  all 
arrangements  whether  of  a  cool  or  warm  tone. 
Its  effect -as  a  melodizing  hue  with  blue,  green, 
and  purple,  will  be  seen  by  reference  to  the  dia¬ 
gram.  But  it  is  in  its  contrasting  powers  in  the 
lower  hues  of  warm-toned  or  brilliant  composi¬ 
tions  that  it  is  most  valuable.  It  relieves  and 
harmonizes,  according  to  its  various  tones,  the 
tertiaries — russet,  citron,  mar  one,  and  brown. 
Owing,  however,  to  the  discord  already  noticed,  it 
ought  never  to  be  brought  into  immediate  contact 
with  blue,  but  should  be  melodized  by  the  intro¬ 
duction  of  a  semi-tonic  hue  between  them.  This 
hue  may  be  a  gray  of  a  warm  purplish  tone, 
which  will  melodize  best  in  being  blended  with 
the  blue,  and  produce  harmony  in  coming  dis- 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


101 


tinctly  against  the  olive  in  its  full  warmth.  Slate- 
color  is  the  next  hue  in  the  progress  of  blue  down 
to  black,  which,  from  its  peculiar  nature,  cannot 
be  used  in  any  but  cool-toned  arrangements. 

Blue  is  individually  a  pleasing  and,  at  the 
same  time,  a  brilliant  color.  It  may,  therefore, 
be  used  in  any  general  arrangement  of  colors,  as 
it  is  in  the  coloring  of  nature,  in  a  much  larger 
proportion  than  either  of  the  other  two  primaries. 
As  a  leading  color  in  decoration,  it  is  extremely 
beautiful  when  in  its  proper  place.  For  instance, 
in  the  drawing-room  of  a  summer  residence, 
especially  when  lighted  from  the  south,-  its  effect, 
as  a  key,wis  cool  and  refreshing,  as  also  in  bed¬ 
rooms  of  the  same  description.  In  all  variously- 
colored  manufactures  of  silk,  pure  blue,  when 
properly  introduced,  is  both  sparkling  and  pleas¬ 
ing  ;  but  in  worsted  manufactures,  its  shades  and 
tints  are  the  most  useful;  but  probably  from 
some  difficulty  in  procuring  a  proper  dye,  it  is 
seldom,  if  ever,  produced  in  perfect  purity  in 
such  fabrics.  Pale  tints  of  blue,  or  any  other 
cool  color,  ought  never  to  be  introduced  into 
warm  arrangements.  In  such  cases  it  ought 
always  to  be  used  in  its  deepest  hues  and  shades. 
This  ought  to  be  particularly  attended  to  by 
9* 


102 


THE  LAWS  OP 


designers  of  patterns  for  manufactures :  fos  the 
indiscriminate  introduction  of  light  cool  tints  is 
a  prevailing  error  amongst  them.  It  has  already 
been  explained,  that  warm  colors  are  naturally 
allied  to  light,  and  cool  colors  to  shade.  Light 
tints  are,  therefore,  when  employed  in  such 
designs,  enhanced  and  strengthened  by  being  of 
a  warm  tone,  and  are,  consequently  neutralized 
and  sunk  as  they  approach  to  that  which  is  cool. 
In  the  works  of  the  most  eminent  artists,  this 
coolness  and  subordination  of  the  shades,  and 
glowing  warmth  in  the  lights,  must  be  apparent 
to  all  who  have  paid  any  attention  to  the  subject. 

Green,  although  the  last  in  the  general  series 
which  I  have  adopted,  is  the  medial  or  second  of 
the  secondary  colors,  because  it  is  a  compound  of 
yellow  and  blue,  in  equal  proportions — the  one 
primary  being  most  allied  to  light,  and  the  other 
to  shade.  Its  melodizing  colors  are  of  course 
these  two  primaries,  and  its  contrasting  color  the 
remaining  primary,  red.  As  red  is  the  most 
decided  or  pre-eminent  of  the  primaries,  so  green 
is  the  most  cool  and  soft’ of  the  secondaries,  and 
the  most  pleasing  and  agreeable  of  all  decided 
colors.  It  is  also  unlike  the  other  two  second- 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


103 


arie*  in  this  respect — that,  in  its  approximation 
to  either  of  its  component  parts,  it  produces  no 
other  distinct  denomination  of  color — all  its  tones 
retaining  the  same  name.  Out  of  the  union  of 
green  with  orange  arises  the  lightest  of  the  ter¬ 
tiary  colors,  citron ;  and  out  of  that  with  purple 
the  deepest,  olive,  to  which  it  appears  particu¬ 
larly  allied.  „ 

Green  is  nature’s  favorite  color,  prevailing 
over  the  face  of  the  landscape  to  a  far  greater 
extent  than  any  other.  By  a  beneficent  exercise 
of  the  divine  wisdom,  it  is  exhibited  in  its  greatest 
intensity  and  depth  when  the  sun’s  rays  are  most 
powerful,  thereby  counteracting  the  intensity  of 
their  reflection,  and  refreshing  the  eye  by  its  soft 
and  soothing  influence.  Green,  however,  like 
every  other  element  in  nature’s  coloring,  seldom 
appears  in  vegetation  in  its  primitive  purity — 
hence  the  beautiful  accordance  between  the  green 
of  the  landscape  and  the  blue  of  the  sky,  so  evi¬ 
dently  assisted  in  both  harmony  and  melody  by 
the  intervention  of  the  warm  and  neutral  gray, 
which  prevails  intermediately  in  the  distance  of 
the  one  and  the  horizon  of  the  other.  Green  in 
its  various  tones,  as  may  naturally  be  supposed, 
is  a  favorite  color  in  decoration,  and  would  be 


104 


THE  LAWS  OF 


much  more  so,  were  it  not  that  in  artificial  Jight 
its  effect  is  much  deteriorated,  becoming  in  most 
cases  dull  and  heavy. 

The  cause  of  this  I  have  already  explained  in 
treating  of  yellow  and  purple.  This,  however, 
may  in  a  great  measure  be  avoided  by  toning  it, 
by  keeping  it  in  its  proper  place,  and  by  select¬ 
ing  proper  colors  as  ap.  accompaniment  to  it.  A 
rich  tone  of  green  upon  the  walls  of  a  drawing¬ 
room,  accompanied  by  cream-color,  French-white, 
and  gilding  on  the  cornice,  ceiling,  and  wood¬ 
work,  with  damask  hangings  of  giraffe  and  gold 
color,  and  a  suitable  carpet,  never  fails  to  pro¬ 
duce  a  pleasing  and  splendid  effect  in  any  light. 
When  this  arrangement  is  inverted,  that  is,  when 
the  hangings  and  chair-seats  are  green,  and  the 
walls  of  a  warm  tone,  the  effect  is  equally  beauti¬ 
ful  in  daylight ;  but  in  artificial  light  it  is  injured 
by  the  green  being  neutralized,  and  the  warm 
tone  on  the  wall  rendered  more  effective ;  thus 
making  that  which  is  principal  in  the  arrange¬ 
ment,  and  of  the  smallest  quantity,  recede,  while 
that  which  ought  to  retire  and  be  subordinate  is  . 
brought  forward.  This  applies  to  all  other  colors 
employed  in  decoration,  according  to  their  rela- 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


105 


tive  powers  of  reflecting  or  absorbing  such  kinds 
of  light. 

Of  all  decided  colors,  green  may  be  used  with 
most  freedom  in  manufactures.  In  carpets,  espe¬ 
cially,  it  ought  almost  always  to  preponderate. 
They  receive  the  rays  of  light  more  directly 
during  the  day  than  any  other  part  of  the  furni¬ 
ture  or  decoration  ;  and  %  green  in  its  various 
hues,  is  not  only  in  that  light  most  pleasing,  but 
also  relieves  and  harmonizes  others  more  effectu¬ 
ally  than  any  other  color.  Its  bright  and  vivid 
tones  and  tints  are  easily  neutralized,  and  seldom 
produce  crudity  or  harshness  of  effect  in  any 
arrangement.  Rich  and  deep  tones  of  green,  es- 

"Sr 

pecially  when  tempered  towards  a  tertiary  hue, 
harmonize  with  and  give  value  to  all  descrip¬ 
tions  of  warm  colors.  Its  cooler  hues  and  shades 
ought,  however,  to  be  used  with  more  caution; 
for  they  are  apt  to  appear  heavy,  and  although 
blue  predominates  in  them  to  the  same  extent 
that  it  does  in  the  hues  of  purple  called  indigo, 
yet  they  have  not  the  same  clearness. 

As  already  observed,  there  cannot  be  produced 
any  other  absolutely  distinct  description  of  color 
but  one,  and  that  is  by  a  combination  of  the  .three 
primaries,  or,  what  is  the  same  thing,  any  two  of 


106 


THE  LAWS  OF 


the  secondaries.  Of  the  infinite  multitude  of  hues 
which  arise  out  of  the  triple  combination,  I  have 
in  another  part  adopted,  as  the  seventh  color,  the 
most  neutral  of  them  all,  gray.  Those  tertiary 
hues  that  are  distinguished  by  a  predominance  of 
one  of  the  primary  or  secondary  colors  in  their 
composition,  I  have  noticed  in  treating  of  the 
colors  themselves.  In  decorative  arrangements, 
oak  may  be  reckoned  of  a  citron,  and  mahogany 
of  a  russet  hue,  and  they  will,  of  course,  bear 
the  relation  of  these  tertiaries  to  the  other  colors 
with  which  they  are  associated. 

Black,  as  already  noticed,  is  produced  by  the 
total  interruption  of  the  action  which  produces 
light,  and  its  natural  contrast  is  white — being 
the  most  perfect  state  of  that  action.  Black  can 
only  be  used  in  large  quantities  in  arrangements 
of  a  cool  and  sombre  character,  and  ought  always 
to  be  pure  and  transparent.  Bor  want  of  this 
quality  in  the  black  employed  in  the  generality 
of  worsted  fabrics,  it  has  always  a  sooty  and 
heavy  effect.  It  o*aght,  therefore,  to  be  em¬ 
ployed  in  such  manufactures  with  great  caution. 
Perhaps  the  most  general  error  in  the  coloring 
of  the  carpets  manufactured  in  this  country  was, 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


107 


till  of  late,  the  too  frequent  use  of  black  and 
white.  The  deepest  shades  should  never  go  be¬ 
low  indigo,  marone,  or  brown,  and  the  highest 
tints,  as  already  observed,  would  be  much  im¬ 
proved  by  being  mellowed  down  by  some  warm 
color.  More  latitude  may  be  taken  with  black 
in  the  coloring  of  silk  manufactures,  as  it  can  be 
produced  on  that  material  in  the  greatest  clear¬ 
ness  and  depth.  Its  use  in  modern  decoration  is 
rather  limited,  being  generally  confined  to  chair- 
seats,  door-mountings,  and  dining-room  chimney- 
pieces. 

In  the  decorative  painting,  however,  of  Pompeii 
and  Herculaneum,  it  was  used  in  large  quantities ; 
and  in  combination  with  the  intense  and  brilliant 
colors  which  accompanied  it,  produced  the  most 
splendid  effect.  This  evidently  resulted  from 
the  perfect  knowledge  possessed  by  the  deco¬ 
rators  of  that  period  of  the  relative  powers  of 
their  materials,  which  seem  to  have  been  in  their 
hands  what  the  keys  of  a  powerful  organ  would 
at  the  present  period  be  in  those  of  an  accom¬ 
plished  musician.  Yet  this^se  of  the  brightest 
and  deepest  colors,  by  the  ancient  Roman,  was 
perhaps  more  a  particular  characteristic  of  style, 
than  a  beauty  in  their  decorative  coloring.  But, 


THE  LAWS  OF 


108. 

as  already  observed,  it  was  tbe  best  adapted  to 
their  clear  skies,  and,  in  some  cases,  uncovered 
apartments. 

Black,  and  its  contrasting  hue,  white,  are  the 
two  most  dangerous  elements  in  the  whole  chro¬ 
matic  series ;  the  one  being  at  the  bottom  and 
the  other  at  the  top  of  the  scale  ;  and  particular 
care  is,  therefore,  required  in  their  management. 

When  an  arrangement  of  rich  and  intense 
colors  is  here  and  there  interrupted  by  patches 
or  shadings  of  black,  as  too  often  happens  in 
patterns  of  carpets  and  other  subjects  of  a  similar 
nature,  the  effect  is  harsh  and  unpleasant.  It 
ought,  therefore,  in  all  such  designs,  to  be  ac¬ 
companied  and  mellowed  by  those  deep  hues 
that  lie  next  in  the  natural  series.  White  should 
in  like  manner,  as  before  noticed,  be  introduced 
by  a  gradation  of  the  lightest  tints,  otherwise 
the  effect  will  be  spotty  and  broken. 

It  is  very  difficult  to  give  rules  that  will  be 
applicable  in  all  cases,  but  it  is  trusted  the  above 
will  be  of  some  use  in  the  general  practice  of  the 
decorator  and  manufacturer. 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


•  109 


PART  II. 


ON  THE  PRACTICE  OF  HOUSE-PAINTING. 


The  principles  which  operate  in  the  produc¬ 
tion  of  beauty  in  the  art  of  house-painting,  con¬ 
stitute  a  branch  of  the  science  of  .Esthetics,  with 
which  the  public  are  becoming  daily  more  ac¬ 
quainted  ;  but  the  practical  department  of  this 
•art  is  still  enveloped  in  mystery.  Such  mystery, 
however,  ought  not  to~  exist  in  a  country  like 
Great  Britain,  where  this  department  of  house¬ 
painting  cannot  fail  to  be  a  subject  of  general 
interest,  inasmuch  as  it  is  calculated  to  enhance 
greatly  the  durability  of  our  dwelling-houses  and 
public  buildings,  and  the  comfort  of  their  occu¬ 
pants,  by  preserving  them  from  the  effects  of  a 
changeable  climate  and  humid  atmosphere; 

10- 


110 


THE  LAV/S  OP 


In  this  country  the  ceilings  and  walls  of  the 
apartments  in  our  dwelling-houses  and  other 
buildings  are  almost  uniformly  finished  in 
plaster.  How,  it  is  well  known  that  this  com¬ 
position  is  remarkable  for  its  great  facility  in 
absorbing  moisture.  Consequently,  when  an  un¬ 
painted  plastered  apartment  is  left  for  any  length 
of  time  without  the  benefit  of  a  fire,  or  heated 
air  supplied  by  other  means,  a  portion  of  that 
humidity  with  which  our  atmosphere  is  generally 
loaded  will  be  absorbed,  and  the  room  thereby 
rendered  unwholesome,  and  its  wood-fittings,  as 
well  as  the  plaster  itself,  impaired  in  durability. 

The  first  and  most  important  object  in  deco¬ 
rating  a  house  is,  therefore,  to  render  its  interior 
walls  impervious  to  this  absorption,  and  the 
most  effectual  way  to  do  this  is  to  paint  them. 
Important  as  this  operation  is,  it  is  often  mis¬ 
managed  to  such  an  extent  that  families  are  put 
to  all  the  inconvenience,  trouble,  and  expense  of 
a  thorough  painting  several  times  during  the 
best  part  of  a  lifetime,  where  once  might  suffice. 
The  cause  of  this  shall  now  be  shown. 

The  materials  employed  by  the  house-painter, 
in  what  is  termed  plain  painting,  are — 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


Ill 


WHITE-LEAD, 

LITHARGE, 

SUGAR-OF-LEAD, 

RED-LEAD, 

ORANGE-LEAD, 

CHROME-YELLOW, 

CHROME-GREEN, 

YELLOW-OCHRE, 

TERRA-DI-SIENA, 

INDIAN  RED, 

VERMILION, 


LAKE, 

CALCOTHAR  OR  VITRIOL, 
VENETIAN  RED, 

SPANISH  BROWN, 
PRUSSIAN  BLUE, 

FRENCH  ULTRAMARINE, 
TURKEY  UMBER, 
ENGLISH  UMBER, 
LAMP-BLACK, 

LINSEED  OIL, 

SPIRITS  OF  TURPENTINE. 


With,  the  nature,  properties,  and  varieties  of 
each  of  these  ingredients  used  in  the  compound¬ 
ing  of  paint  I  shall  endeavor  to  make  the  reader 
acquainted. 


White-Lead  forms,  or  ought  to  form,  the 
body  of  almost  all  light-colored  paints,  often 
constituting  nine-tenths  of  the  composition.  It 
is  a  carbonate  of  the  metal  from  which  it  takes 
its  name,  and  is  prepared  by  exposing  thin 
plates  of  cast  lead  to  the  action  of  the  vapor  of 
ascetic  acid,  air,  and  carbonic  acid.  Other  pro¬ 
cesses  are  employed  for  the  same  purpose,  but 
it  is  by  this  process  only  that  the  resulting  car- 


112 


THE  LAWS  OF 


bonate  of  lead  is  obtained  of  that  degree  of 
density  and  opacity,  and  fliat  perfect  freedom 
from  crystalline  texture,  which  properly  fit  it 
for  paint.  This  is  called  the  Dutch  process,  and 
was  introduced  into  England  about  the  year 
1780.  It  is  fully  described,  together  with,  the 
other  processes,  in  Brande’s  Manual  of  Chemistry , 
fifth  edition,  p.  844.  The  quality  of  this  article 
ought  to  be  considered  of  the  greatest  import¬ 
ance  by  the  house-painter,  as  upon  it  depends 
the  durability  of  his  work ;  yet  it  is,  of  all  the 
materials  he  employs,  the  most  difficult  to  be 
obtained  in  an  unadulterated  state.  For  all 
general  purposes  he  procures  it  ground  in  oil  to 
the  consistency  of  a  thick  paste,  which  is  pro¬ 
duced  by  mixing  the  carbonate  in  a  damp  state 
with  refined  linseed  oil,  and  passing  them 
through  a  mill,  in  which  they  are  properly 
amalgamated.  It  is  in  this  process  that  adulte¬ 
ration  takes  place.  Formerly  fine  chalk  or 
whiting  used  to  be  employed  by  the  manufac¬ 
turer  to  cheapen  this  article,  but  when  thus  adul¬ 
terated,  the  presence  of  the  chalk  was  detected 
by  its  specific  gravity.  While  this  mode  was 
in  use,  the  late  Sir  John  Bobison,  secretary  to 
the  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  being  elected 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


113 


a  commissioner  of  police,  had  a  small  vessel 
filled  with.  genuine*  white- lead  and  a  similar 
vessel  filled  with  that  which  was  procured  by 
contract  for  the  city  works,  and  the  difference 
of  gravity  was  found  to  he  several  ounces  in  the 
pound-weight.  But  the  possibility  of  detecting 
the  adulteration  of  white-lead  is  now  rendered 
very  difficult,  from  its  being  reduced  by  the 
admixture  of  a  cheap  mineral  substance  called 
sulphate  of  baryta,  which  resembles  lead  in  its 
gravity,  but  not  in  its  density  and  opacity,  and 
is  now  very  largely  employed  in  this  way. 
Therefore  the  painter,  who  by  competition  must 
work  at  low  rates,  is  naturally  liable  to  be 
tempted  by  the  offer  of  white-lead  below  the 
market  price,  by  which  he  effects  a  small  saving 
in  his  material,  while  ,  the  employer  sustains  a 
great  loss  from  the  want  of  proper  durability 
in  the  work.  The  only  mode  of  detecting  the 
presence  of  baryta  in  white-lead  is  by  its  insolu¬ 
bility  in  dilute  nitric  acid,  pure  lead  being 
entirely  dissolved  by  it.  But  this  is  rather  a 
difficult  process  when  the  paint  is  in  its  manu¬ 
factured  state,  and  the  only  way  in  which  a 
painter  can  be  quite  safe  is  to  make  his  orders 
worthy  of  the  manufacturer’s  particular  atten- 
10* 


114 


THE  LAWS  OF 


tion,  by  giving  tbe  highest  price,  as  also  by 
taking  a  large  quantity  at  a  time,  in  which  case 
it  may  be  warranted  free  of  adulteration. 

For  the  thick  paste  into  which  white-lead  is 
ground  by  the  manufacturer,  the  painter  reduces 
it,  by  means  of  linseed  oil  and  spirits  of  turpen¬ 
tine,  to  that  consistency  more  properly  called 
paint,  as  shall  afterwards  be  explained. 

Lead  supplies  to  the  painter  other  materials 
besides  its  carbonate. 

Litharge,  the  fused  oxide  of  that  metal, 
made  by  the  simple  action  of  heat  and  air  in  the 
process  of  extracting  silver  from  lead,  is  used 
as  a  drying  ingredient  in  tire  first  coats  of  paint 
employed  upon  wood  and  plaster;  and  when 
linseed  oil  is  boiled  for  coarse  out-door  work, 
litharge  is  dissolved  in  it  for  the  same  purpose. 

Sugar-of-lead,  another  dryer,  is  made  by 
exposing  lead  to  the  fumes  of  vinegar  or  pyro¬ 
ligneous  acid — dissolving  the  white  powder  thus 
produced  in  excess  of  acid,  and  then  crystallizing 

it. 


Bed-Lead  and  Orange-Lead  are  other  oxides 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


115 


of  lead  produced  from,  litharge,  and  are  con¬ 
verted  into  paint  by  being  mixed  with  linseed 
oil,  and  reduced  to  a  smooth  paste  by  the  painter. 
This  he  performs  by  spreading  the  red-lead, 
when  mixed  with  the  oil,  upon  a  slab  of  Ar¬ 
broath  pavement-stone,  of  about  thirty  inches 
square,  and  working  it  over  this  surface  by 
means  of  another  stone,  called  a  muller,  which 
is  of  a  conical  form,  with  a  base  of  about  five 
inches  diameter ;  it  is  generally  made  of  whin- 
stone,  and  held  between  the  hands  of  the  painter 
while  triturating  the  paint  between  it  and  the 
slab.  Litharge  and  sugar-of-lead  are  also  sub¬ 
mitted  to  the  same  process  before  being  mixed 
with  the  paint.  Lead  unites  with  iron,  with  the 
alkalies,  and  with  earth,  in  producing  the  chrome 
colors,  which  are — 

Chrome- Yellow  of  various  tones,  from  the 
clearest  lemon  to  the  deepest  orange  color.  This 
pigment  is  made  by  adding  a  limpid  solution  of 
the  chromate  of  potash  to  a-  solution,  equally 
limpid,  of  acetate,  or  nitrate  of  lead ;  and  the 
tones  of  its  color  are  deepened  by  the  addition  * 
of  subacetate  of  lead,  or  rendered  pale  by  a  solu¬ 
tion  of  alum  or  sulphuric  acid,  in  the  course  of 


116 


THE  LAWS  OP 


their  manufacture.  There  are  also  reds,  blues, 
and  greens,  which  are  chromates,  and  made  by 
processes  of  a  somewhat  similar  nature,  but  the 
yellow  is  by  far  the  most  important  to  the  house- 
painter — being  almost  the  only  bright  yellow  now 
in  use.  Like  most  other  manufactured  colors,  it 
varies  greatly  both  in  quality  and  price ;  and  the 
only  security  the  painter  can  have  for  its  being 
genuine,  and  of  the  finest  quality,  is  to  purchase 
it  from  a  manufacturer  of  high  respectability,  a*nd 
give  the.  highest  price.  It  comes  from  the  manu¬ 
facturer  in  dry  lumps,  and  is  converted  into  paint 
by  the  process  already  described. 

The  Ochres  are  another  class  of  yellows  of 
which  there  is  great  variety.  They  are  a  native 
earthy  mixture  of  silica  and  alumina,  colored  by 
oxide  of  iron,  with  occasionally  a  little  calcare¬ 
ous  matter  and  magnesia,  and  are  found  between 
strata  of  rock  and  sand.  Ochre  varies  in  color 
from  a  light  tint  of  tempered  yellow  to  a ‘tempered 
red,  and  in  price  from  Id.  to  Is.  per  lb. 

Yellow-ochre  may  be  made  of  a  dull  red-hue 
by  being  gently  calcined.  Native  red-ochre  is 
called  red  chalk,  but  is  never  converted  into  a 
pigment.  The  lower  qualities  of  ochre  are  found 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


117 


in  large  quantities  in  this  country,  and  are  used 
for  mixing  the  commonest  kinds  of  paints  for  out¬ 
door  work,  floor-cloths,  &c.  The  finest  quality  is 
found  at  Siena,  in  Italy,  and  is  called — 

Terra-di-Siena.  This  species  of  ochre  is  as 
useful  to  the  professor  of  high  art  as  it  is  to 
the  house-painter.  It  has  great  density,  without 
opacity,  and  produces  delicate  tints  when  mixed 
with  white  paint,  or  when  used  as  a  transparent 
color  upon  a  light  groundwork.  The  house- 
painter  who  wishes  to  do  ample  justice  to  his 
employer,  should  use  no  other  yellows  for  inte¬ 
rior  painting  besides  chrome-yellow  of  the  best 
kind,  and  terra  di  Siena ,  because  by  these  two 
pigments  every  color  or  hue,  of  which  yellow  is 
an  element,  may  be  produced,  and  because  they 
are  the  only  yellows  that  can  be  depended  upon 
for  durability. 

When  calcined,  terra  di  Siena  forms  one  of  the 
most  beautiful  hues  of  reddish- orange  or  brown, 
which  is  as  useful  in  producing  tints,  by  its 
admixture  with  white  paint,  as  it  is  by  its  trans¬ 
parency  in  giving  richness  to  shades  when  used 
as  a  glazing  color.  * 

Of  Reds  there  are  ntf&ny  kinds,  principally 


118 


THE  LAWS  OF 


manufactured.  Perhaps  the  only  native  red, 
besides  the  burnt  ochres,  converted  into  a  pig¬ 
ment  by  the  house-painter,  is  Indian  Red. 

Indian  Red  is  brought  to  England  in  its 
native  state,  «which  is  that  of  a  very  rich  iron 
ore,  full  of  gritty  particles,  but  of  these  it  is 
generally  freed  before  being  converted  into  paint. 
It  is  of  various  tones,  but  all  of  a  slightly  purplish 
character,  and  when  reduced,  by  being  mixed 
with  white  paint,  produces  very  delicate  tints. 
It  is  not  transparent,  and,  consequently,  cannot 
be  reduced  to  a  tint  in  any  other  way.  It  is, 
like  most  other  native  colors,  remarkable  for  its 
permanency ;  and  it,  as  well  as  the  other  native 
colors,  are  converted  into  paint  by  the  same  pro¬ 
cess  explained  in  reference  to  the  manufactured 
colors. 

Cinnabar  is  the  native  red  sulphuret  of  mer¬ 
cury,  but  is  superseded  in  its  use  as  a  pigment 
by  the  factitious  cinnabar,  called  Vermilion, 
which,  like  the  native  kind,  is  a  compound  of 
mercury  and  sulphur. 

Vermilion  is  manufactured  in  England,  Hol¬ 
land,  and  other  parts  ©f  Europe,  but  the  finest 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


119 


quality  is  manufactured  in  China,  which,  how¬ 
ever,  is  often  adulterated  before  it  reaches  the 
hands  of  the  painter.  Field  says  of  this  color : 
“It  is  true  that  vermilions  have  obtained  the 
double  disrepute  of  fading  in  a  strong  light,  and 
of  becoming  black  or  dark  by  time  or  impure 
air;  but  colors,  like  characters,  suffer  contami¬ 
nation  and  disrepute  from  bad  association ;  it  has 
happened,  accordingly,  that  vermilion  which  has 
been  rendered  lakey  or  crimson  by  mixture  with 
lake  or  carmine,  has  faded  in  the  light,  and  that 
when  it  has  been  toned  to  the  scarlet  hue  by 
red  or  orange  lead,  it  has  afterwards  become 
blackened  in  impure  air,  &c.  Hence  the  ill  fame 
of  vermilion  both  with  authors  and  artists.”* 
Eeal  Chinese  vermilion  is  a  permanent  and  a 
beautiful  color — it  is  an  impalpable  powder,  pos¬ 
sessing  great  density  aii4  opacity  when  mixed 
as  a  paint,  but  from  the  ease  with  which  it  is 
adulterated,  and  the  consequent  difficulty  of  ob¬ 
taining  it  pure  in  this  country,  it  is  requisite  to 
commission  it  direct  from  China  in  order  to  in¬ 
sure  its  being  genuine :  it  costs  in  China  about 
4s.  lOd.  per  pound.  Its  price  in  this  country 


*  Field’s  Chromatography,  &c.,  see  p.  93. 


120 


THE  LAWS  OF 


varies  from  three  shillings  to  six  shillings  per 
pound. 

Lake  is  another  manufactured  red  used  by 
the  house  painter.  Its  tones  vary  from  scarlet 
to  crimson,  and  the  methods  by  which  it  is  pro¬ 
duced  are  very  numerous.  The  best  lake  is 
made  from  cochineal,  and  the  worst  is  made  by 
the  precipitation  of  tinctures  of  Brazil-wood  and 
other  dyeing  drugs,  upon  alumina  and  other 
earths.  The  best  lake  is  made  in  China,  but  it 
can  be  so  well  imitated,  in  all  but  its  durability, 
by  the  European  manufacturer,  that  it  is  very 
difficult  to  be  had,  being  seldom  brought  down 
to  any  of  the  Chinese  ports  with  which  we  trade.* 

Lake  is  transparent,  and  more  used  in  that  way, 
than  mixed  as  a  tint  with  white-lead.  When  used 
as  a  crimson  for  poly<jirome  work  upon  ceilings, 
it  is  mixed  with  spirits  of  turpentine  instead  of 
oil,  because  the  spirits  hold  a  greater  body  of  it 
in  Solution ;  but  this  shall  be  explained  more 
fully  in  the  sequel.  Lake  varies  in  price  accord- 

*  As  a  proof  of  this,  I  may  mention,  that  within  the  last 
three  years,  I  have  sent  orders  both  to  Canton  and  Hong 
Kong  for  lake,  which  have  not  yet  been  executed,  while 
there  was  no  difficulty  in  regard  to  vermilion. 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


121 


ing  to  quality,  from  ten  shillings'  to  sixty  shil¬ 
lings  the  pound-weight.  Some  of  the  beautiful 
madder  lakes  made  by  Field  are,  I  believe,  much 
more  expensive,  but  they  are  only  for  the  palette 
of  the  professor  of  high  art. 

Rose-pink  is  a  coarse  kind  of  lake,  produced 
by  dyeing  chalk  or  whiting  with  decoction  of 
Brazil-wood,  but  it  is  only  fit  for  paper-staining. 

Colcothar  of  Vitriol,  the  purplish  red  per¬ 
oxide  of  iron,  made  by  adding  solution  of  soda 
to  the  solution  of  sulphate  of  iron  or  copperas,  is 
another  red  used  by  the  house-painter.  It  pro¬ 
duces  the  chocolate  paint  so  much  in  use  for  the 
wood-work  of  kitchens,  servants’  halls,  &c.  It 
is  cheap  in  price,  and  very  durable.  This  sub¬ 
stance,  when  carefully  washed,  is  the  rouge  of 
the  silversmith. 

Venetian  ReI),  Light -Red,  and  Spanish 
Brown,  are  burnt  ochres  of  coarse  quality,  and 
used  by  the  house-painter  as  red  pigments. 

I 

A  native  Blue  is  unknown  in  the  art  of  house¬ 
painting.  Indeed,  there  are  only  two  native 
pigments  of  this  color,  namely,  Saunder’s  blue, 
11 


122 


THE  LAWS  OF 


found  near  copper-mines,  which  has  the  defect  of 
turning  green  when  mixed  with  oil,  and  blue- 
ochre,  a  subphosphate  of  iron  found  in  Cornwall 
and  in  North  America.  Field  says :  “  What  In¬ 
dian  red  is  to  the  color  red,  and  Oxford  ochre  to 
yellow,  this  color  is  to  the  color  blue.”  But  it 
is  not  in  general  use,  or  easily  procurable. 

Prussian  Blue  is  one  of  the  most  important 
pigments  to  the  house-painter  as  a  manufactured 
blue.  It  is  the  percyanide  of  iron,  and  is  pro¬ 
duced  by  heating  to  redness  dried  blood,  or  other 
animal  matter,  with  an  equal  weight  of  pearl 
ash,  till  reduced  to  a  paste,  which  is  again  re¬ 
duced  with  water,  filtered,  and  mixed  with  a 
solution  of  one  part  of  proto-sulphate  of  iron 
and  two  parts  of  alum.  The  precipitate  of  this 
is  greenish,  but  it  absorbs  oxygen  from  the 
atmosphere  which  completes  the  process.  It  is 
a  deep  and  powerful  color,  mixing  well  with 
white  paint  in  the  production  of  all  tints  of 
which  blue  is  an  element,  and  is  at  the  same 
time  decidedly  transparent.  It  is,  like  most 
other  manufactured  pigments,  of  various  quali¬ 
ties. 


♦ 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


123 


Factitious  U ltramarine  is  now  much  used  by 
the  higher  class  of  house-painters,  where  richness, 
brilliancy,  and  permancy  of  color  are  required. 
There  are  various  qualities  of  this  pigment,  and  it 
is  consequently  sold  at  various  prices,  from  five 
shillings  to  forty  shillings  a  pound ;  but  that 
made  bj  Guimet,  who  invented  it  in  1828,  is 
decidedly  the  best,  and  is  never,  when  genuine, 
sold  below  the  highest  price.  This  is  very  little 
inferior  to  the  lazulite  ( lapis  lazuli)  ultramarine, 
used  in  high  art.  It  was  made  by  Guimet  in  the 
following  manner :  A  mixture  of  sulphur  and 
dry  carbonate  of  soda  was  heated  to  redness; 
when  the  mass  fused,  another  mixture  of  silicate 
of  soda  and  aluminate  of  soda  was  sprinkled 
into  it  by  degrees.  The  crucible  in  which  this 
was  performed  was  then  again  exposed  for  an 
•  hour  to  the  fire,  by  which  time  the  ultrama¬ 
rine  was  formed,  only  it  contained  a  little  sul¬ 
phur,  which  was  separated  by  means  of  water. 
Various  other  processes  have  since  been  in¬ 
vented,  all  proving  that  ultramarine  is  a  com¬ 
pound  of  silicate  of  alumina,  silicate  of  soda, 
and  sulphurate  of  sodium,  the  color  being  the 
result  of  the  reaction  of  the  latter  constituent 


» 


124 


THE  LAWS  OP 


upon  the  two  former.  The  blue  of  the  diagram 
is  Gruimet’s  ultramarine. 

One  of  the  most  useful  pigments  in  the  hands 
of  the  house-painter  is  Umber,  of  which  there  are 
two  kinds — Turkey  umber  and  English  umber. 

Turkey  Umber  is  decidedly  the  best  of  the 
two.  It  is  a  variety  of  ochraceous  iron  ore, 
chiefly  brought  from  Cypress,  and  is  of  a  gray¬ 
ish  tone  of  brown,  approaching  yellow-hue.  It 
is  of  great  density,  producing  a  variety  of  beau¬ 
tifully  chaste  tints  when  mixed  with  white  paint, 
and  assisting  the  drying  of  all  paints  of  which 
it  forms  a  constituent.  When  calcined,  its  color 
approaches  more  the  tone  of  russet  or  red-hue, 
and  is,  in  its  burnt  state  as  well  as  in  its  native 
state,  the  most  efficient  pigment  in  the  produc¬ 
tion  of  all  varieties  of  drab  and  stone  color. 
The  inferior  umber  called  English,  is  a  'native 
earth  found  in  Derbyshire,  Somersetshire,  and 
other  parts  of  England,  and  is  used  instead  of 
Turkey  umber  upon  low-priced  work. 

The  media  or  vehicles  by  which  these  pigments 
are  mixed,  when  applied  in  house-painting,  are 
first,  linseed- oil;  secondly,  a  mixture  of  linseed- 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


125 


oil  with  spirits  of  turpentine ;  and,  thirdly,  spirits 
of  turpentine  alone,  with  some  drying  ingredient. 

These  drying  ingredients  are  litharge  and 
sugar- of- lead,  already  noticed,  and  a  kind  of 
varnish  called  japanner’s  gold-size,  made  of  the 
refuse  of  gum  copal,  or  gum  anima,  litharge,  and 
umber  dissolved  by  heat  in  linseed-oil  and 
spirits  of  turpentine,  thoroughly  amalgamated 
and  purified. 

Linseed-Oil  is  the  only  oil  used  by  the  house-  ’ 
painter.  It  is,  as  its  name  implies,  produced 
from  linseed.  The  following  fs  the  process :  The 
seed  is  first  bruised,  either  by  the  original  mode 
of  being  pounded  in  hard  wooden  mortars  by 
pestles  shod  with  iron,  set  in  motion  by  earns, 
driven  by  horse  or  water  power,  or  by  hydraulic 
mill.  The  seed  thus  triturated,  is  put  into  wool¬ 
len  bags,  which  are  again  wrapped  up  in  hair¬ 
cloths,  and  the  oil  expressed,  either  by  these 
bags  being  squeezed  between  upright  wedges  in 
press-boxes,  by  the  impulsion  of  vertical  rams 
driven  by  the  same  mechanism,  or  subjected  to 
the  more  powerful  *  operation  of  the  hydraulic 
press. 

This  material  varies  little  in  quality,  and  is  not 
11* 


126 


THE  LAWS  OF 


liable  to  be  adulterated.  The  only  superiority  of 
one  kind  over  another  is  in  its  age  and  clearness ; 
for  where  a  large  stock’ is  kept,  it  is  found  that  in 
about  six  months  there  is  a  considerable  accumu¬ 
lation  of  refuse  at  the  bottom  of  the  cistern,  which 
is  only  fit  to  be  employed  in  mixing  coarse  paint 
for  out-door  work.  Linseed- oil  varies  greatly  in 
price,  according  to  the  demand  for  the  cake  which 
is  necessarily  manufactured  along  with  it,  and  is 
used  for  fattening  cattle,  as  also  according  to  the 
state  of  the  seed  market,  sometimes  changing 
from  £25  to  £40  per  tun,  in  the  course  of  a  few 
months  ;  so  that  the  tradesman  whose  capital  and 
premises  enable  him  to  take  the  advantage  of  the 
market,  often  effects  a  great  saving  upon  this 
article. 

Linseed-oil  is  sometimes  boiled  with  litharge 
to  make  it  dry  quick,  but  when  it  is  thus  treated, 
it  is  unfit  for  good  work,  as  shall  afterwards  be 
shown. 

• .  - 

Spirits  of  Turpentine  is  now  much  used  as 
a  vehicle  by  the  house-painter.  This  oleaginous 
spirit  is  extracted  from  the  *semi-liquid  resinous 
substance  which  exudes  from  a  certain  species  of 
pinus7  or  fir  tree.  It  is  separated  from  the  resin, 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


127 


by  being  distilled  along  with  water,  and  is  color¬ 
less,  limpid,  and  very  volatile,  having  a  peculiar, 
but  not  disagreeable  nor  unwholesome  smell. 
Its  quality  depends  upon  its  freedom  from  hold¬ 
ing  any  of  the  resin  in  solution,  with  which  it 
was  combined  while  in  its  native  state.  The 
price  of  spirits  of  turpentine  is  as  fluctuating  as 
that  of  linseed-oil. 

These  are  the  materials  used  by  the  house- 
painter  in  the  manufacture  of  that  covering  in¬ 
tended  to  secure  the  plaster  and  wood  finishings 
of  buildings  from  the  injurious  effects  of  a  change¬ 
able  climate  and  a  humid  atmosphere.  The 
methods  by  which  they  are  applied  to  this  pur¬ 
pose  shall  next  be  explained. 


128 


THE  LAWS  OF 


ON  THE  METHODS  OF  EXECUTING  PLAIN 
PAINTING. 

The  mixing  and  laying  on  of  the  materials 
just  treated  of  may  with  as  much  propriety  be 
looked  upon  in  the  light  of  a  manufacture,  as  the 
making  of  paper  or  the  spinning  and  weaving  of 
cotton,  flax,  or  wool  into  cloth;  because  the 
painter  produces  a  fabric  which  will  be  either 
coarse  or  fine,  durable  or  otherwise,  according  to 
the  quality  of  the  materials  mixed  together  in 
the  paint,  and  the  manner  in  which  they  are 
manipulated  in  their  application,  as  is  the  case 
with  other  manufactured  fabrics. 

A  painter  can  easily  mix  two  pots  of  paint,  of 
which  no  builder,  superintendent  of  building,  nor 
even  a  painter  himself,  unless  of  much  expe¬ 
rience,  could,  in  looking  upon  them,  form  an 
opinion  as  to  their  comparative  value ;  yet  they 
would  bear  the  same  relative  value  to  each  other 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


129 


that  two  equal  quantities  of  paper-maker’s  pulp 
would  bear,  one  of  which  was  intended  for 
•making  the  best  drawing-paper,  and  the  other 
for  the  commonest  printing  or  writing  paper — 
perhaps  their  relative  value  might  be  as  one  to 
two.  Now,  the  paint  in  the  one  pot,  that  was 
not  above  half  the  value  of  that  in  the  other, 
would,  from  its  want  of  density  and  body,  spread^ 
over  a  much  larger  surface  of  wood  or  plaster 
work,  than  the  more  expensive  mixture  just  as 
the  inferior  pulp  would  make  by  f&r  the  greatest 
surface  of  paper.  The  product  of  the  paper- 
maker  can  be  examined  in  the  hand,  looked 
through,  and  tested  in  various  ways  as  to  the 
quality  of  the  material  employed,  whilst  the 
quanthy  in  a  given  superficies  is  ascertained  by 
the  pound-weight  of  substance.  But  this  is  not 
the  case  with  the  product  of  the  painter ;  the 
various  coats  agreed  to  be  put  upon  the  wood 
and  plaster  of  a  building  cannot  be  taken  off  and 
looked  through  nor  examined  in  any  way  to  find 
out  their  quality,  neither  can  the  quantity  of 
material  in  a  given  surface  be  guessed  at,  so  that 
he  may  receive  the  same  price  per  yard  for  the 
greater  number  produced  by  the  pot  of  low-priced 
paint  that  he  would  receive  for  the  smaller  num- 


130 


THE  LAWS  OF 


ber  produced  by  the  bigb-priced  pot  of  paint,  or 
may  reduce  bis  rates  in  proportion  to  tbe  saving 
effected  in  material  and  workmanship.  Tbis  is 
one  cause  of  sucb  differences  being  found  in  tbe 
estimates  of  painters  when  brought  into  compe¬ 
tition  for  work.  Tbe  most  unscrupulous  have 
always  tbe  best  chance  where  no  other  distinc¬ 
tion  except  that  of  price  is  made.  The  following 
is  tbe  proper  mode  of  proceeding  in  tbe  manu¬ 
facture  of  tbis  fabric  upon  plaster  work,  tbe 
description  of  which  will  equally  apply  to  tbe 
painting  of  wood-work,  only  tbe  latter  is  less 
absorbent.  / 

White-lead  ground  into  a  thick  paste,  as 
already  described,  is  reduced,  by  mixing  it  with 
linseed-oil,  to  tbe  consistency  of  thin  cream, 
adding  as  a  dryer  a  little  litharge  ground  in  oil, 
as  described,  and  sometimes  a  little  red-lead.. 
Tbis  is  called  tbe  priming,  or  first  coat  of  paint. 
If  on  applying  tbis  tbe  plaster  be  found  very 
absorbent,  so  that  in  passing  tbe  brush  over  it 
in  spreading  out  tbe  priming,  tbe  oil  is  so  quickly 
absorbed  as  to  leave  tbe  white-lead  rough  and 
dry  upon  tbe  surface,  more  oil  should  be  added 
to  tbe  mixture  in  order  that  tbe  plaster  may  be 
deeply  saturated.  To  prevent  tbis  absorption, 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


131 


some  painters  use  boiled  oil  in  their  priming, 
but  this  is  not  doing  the  work  justice,  for  when 
the  oil  is  boiled  it  is  more  viscid,  and  does  not 
penetrate  so  far  into  the  plaster,  but  runs 
smoothly  over  the  surface.  Eaw  oil,  being 
limpid,  penetrates  the  plaster  less  or  more 
according  to  the  facility  with  which  it  is  ab¬ 
sorbed,  and,  when  dry,  thus  far  hardens  the^ 
wall ;  but  boiled  oil,  being  more  unctuous  and 
viscid,  forms  only  a  thin  film,  or,  if  it  penetrates 
at  all,  it  is  but  a  short  way.  It  is  sometimes 
found  requisite,  when  the  plaster  has  a  very 
close  skin  upon  it,  to  mix  a  little  spirits  of 
turpentine  with  the  priming,  to  help  the  absorp¬ 
tion  ;  but  such  cases  are  of  rare  occurrence. 

There  is  a  practice  amongst  painters  which,  in 
some  cities,  where  the  prices  of  their  work  is 
much  reduced,  prevails  to  a  great  extent.  It  is 
this.  They  wash  over  the  plaster  and  wood¬ 
work  (especially  the  former)  with  a  weak  solu¬ 
tion  of  glue,  called  size,  before  the  application 
of  the  first  coat  of  paint;  this  prevents  the 
absorption  of  the  oil,  and  causes  the  paint  to 
spread  over  a  much  greater  surface  than  it  would 
have  done  had  this  preparation  not  been  applied. 
This  practice  is  very  injurious  to  the  work 


132 


THE  LAWS  OF 


(especially  the  plaster)  by  depriving  it  of  that, 
hardening -which  the  absorption  of  the  linseed- 
oil  produces.  The  paint,  even  supposing  it  to 
be  good,  forms  little  more  than  a  thin  weak 
film,  which  is  effectually  separated  from  the 
plaster  by  the  thin  pellicle  of  glue  below  it; 
whereas,  in  the  absence  of  this  preparation,  the 
absorption  of  the  oil  leaves  the  paint  like  a 
firmly  united  crust  upon  the  surface  of  both 
wood  and  plaster.’  (Note  B.) 

W e  shall,  however,  suppose  that  the  priming 
or  first  coat  of  paint  has  been  properly  mixed, 
and  applied,  and  allowed  to  stand  for  a  few  days 
to  harden.  The  number  of  days  will  depend 
upon  the  temperature  kept  up  in  the  apartment, 
upon  the  weather,  and  also  upon  the  absorption 
that  has  taken  place  p- the  experienced  painter 
only  can  say  when  the  second  coat  ought  to  be 
applied. 

The  second  coat  should  be  made  thicker  than 
the  first;  but  its  particular  degree  of  relative 
thickness  will  depend  upon  the  degree  of  absorp¬ 
tion  that  has  taken  place  in  the  application  of 
the  first  coat.  Sometimes  a  great  proportion  of 
it  bears  out — that  is,  dries  with  a  gloss ;  in  which 
case  the  second  coat  ought  to  have  a  good  body 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


133 


of  white  lead  in  it.  At  other  times,  it  is  found 
that  no  part  of  the  first  coat  hears  out,  and  that 
even  some  portions  of  it  have  had  the  oil  so 
completely  absorbed  as  to  leave  nothing  on  the 
surface  but  a  dry  powder.  When  this  is  the 
case,  it  is  a  sure  sign  that  the  plaster  is  of  such  a 
nature  as  to  receive  the  full  benefit  of  the  oil ; 
and,  that  it  may  be  properly  saturated,  the  paint 
for  the  second  coat  is  kept  rather  thin.  Before 
applying  this  coat,  the  work  should  be  rubbed 
with  fine  sand-paper.  If  the  second  coat  bears 
out  properly  when  dry,  the  third  coat  will  form 
the  groundwork  for  the  finishing  process;  but 
should  it  not  bear  out  properly,  the  work  will 
be  understood  to  require  five  coats;  and,  there' 
fore,  another  coat  of  plain  oil-paint  is  applied. 

The  groundwork  for  finishing  upon  is  com¬ 
posed  pf  white-lead,  diluted  with  equal  parts  of 
linseed-oil  and  spirits  of  turpentine;  the  thin¬ 
ness  of  the  lafter  enabling  a  greater  body  of 
white-lead  to  be  held  in  solution,  and  thus  in¬ 
creasing  the  density  of  the  mixture.  Into  this 
such  ground  pigments  are  put  as  will  alter  .the 
white  paint  to  a  tint  of  the  color  in  which  the 
work  is  to  be  finished,  along  with  a  little  sugar - 
of-lead  as  a  dryer.  This  tint  is  made  deeper  than 
12 


134 


THE  LAWS  OF 


the  intended  finishing-coat,  by  which  means  the 
solidity  and  durability  of  the  color  is  increased. 
The  thicker  this  coat  is  made,  and  the  more  it  is 
spread  out  with  the  brush,  the  more  durable 
will  be  the  fabric,  and  the  finer  will  be  its  sur¬ 
face. 

In  some  establishments,  the  workmen  are  al¬ 
lowed  to  bestow  more  time  and  labor  on  twenty 
square  yards  of  surface,  than  they  are  in  others 
allowed  to  bestow  on  double  that  quantity. 

This  ground  color  is  generally  dry  enough  to 
receive  the  finishing-coat  on  the  second  day  after 
it  is  applied,  and  should  not  stand  above  a  few 
days,  as  its  becoming  too  dry  prevents  that  in¬ 
corporation  of  these  two  coats,  so  essential  to 
equality  in  the  opacity  or  deadness  of  the  sur¬ 
face  and  to  the  solidity  of  the  tint. 

The  finishing-coat  is  white-lead  in  the  state  of 
a  thick  paste,  already  described,  diluted  with 
spirits  of  turpentine  only,  and  mixed  with  such 
ground  pigments  as  produce  the  desiihd  tint,  to 
which  is  added  a  little  sugar-of-lead  or  japan 
gold-size  as  a  dryer.  This  species  of  paint, 
when  of  a  light  tint,  is  of  great  density,  and  as, 
from  the  volatility  of  the  spirits  of  turpentine,  it 
soon  thickens  after  leaving  the  brush,  great  pre- 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


135 


cision  and  despatch  must  be  employed  in  apply¬ 
ing  it.  This  is  the  only  coat  of  paint  that,  in 
finished  work,  meets  the  eye  of  the  spectator, 
and  he  cannot,  from  looking  at  it,  have  any  idea 
of  those  that  are  underneath,  and  upon  which 
the  durability  of  the  work  principally  depends. 
This  underwork  may  be  worth  fourpence  a  yard, 
or  it  may  be  worth  ninepence  a  yard,  and  the 
surface  of  the  finishing-coat  look  equally  well. 
This,  as  well  as  the  variety  in  the  quality  of 
pigments,  sufficiently  accounts  for  the  variable 
durability  of  paint  work — some  houses  requiring 
to  be  re-painted  in  four  or  five  years,  while 
others  will  require  little  more  than  washing  for 
‘twenty-five  or  even  thirty  years. 

This  method  of  finishing  is  called  flatted  paint¬ 
ing,  and  is  now  sometimes  stippled,  by  being 
wrought  over  with  the  point  of  a  dry  brush 
immediately  after  being  laid  upon  the  work  in 
the  usual  way,  which  gives  it  an  equal  and 
fine  surface.  In  almost  all  that  kind  of  painting 
improperly  called  cheap  painting ,  as  also  in  all 
cases  where  a  painter  agrees  to  finish  new  work 
with  three  coats,  of  paint — a  coat  of  size  is  intro¬ 
duced  between  the  first  and  second,  or  between 
the  second  and  third  coats.  This  is  not  so  des 


186 


THE  LAWS  OF 


tractive  of  the  quality  of  the  work  as  the  appli¬ 
cation  of  size  before  the  first  coat,  but  it  is  bad 
enough,  and  is  a  practice  that  ought  on  no  ac¬ 
count  to  be  resorted  to.  It  is  this  practice  that 
so  often,  in  the  re-painting  of  a  house,  causes  the 
necessity  of  removing  the  old  paint  entirely ; 
because,  if  this  be  not  done,  the  coats  of  the  old 
paint  separate  where  these  sizings  have  taken 
place,  and  come  chipping  off  along  with  the  new 
painting  which  has  been  put  above  them.  Thus 
a  heavy  extra  expense  is  incurred  where  a  con¬ 
siderable  saving  ought  to  have  been  effected; 
for  good  old  painting,  when  properly  polished 
down,  forms  the  best  groundwork  for  new 
painting. 

Where  there  are  knots  in  wood-work,  it  is 
requisite,  before  priming  it,  to  secure  the  resin 
which  is  concentrated  in  them.  This  is  now 
done  by  means  of  covering  them  with  a  species 
of  varnish  made  by  dissolving  gum-lac  in  spirits 
of  wine;  and,  as  a  further  security  against  the 
resin  coming  through  the  paint,  leaf  metal  is 
fixed  above  this  varnish  by  means  of  japan  gold- 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


137 


ON  THE  MATERIALS  EMPLOYED  IN  ORNA¬ 
MENTAL  PAINTING. 

Haying  endeavored'  to  make  the  reader  in 
some  degree  acquainted  with  the  varieties  of 
materials  employed  by  the  house-painter,  and 
the  various  modes  in  which  he  applies  them  in 
what  is  termed  plain  painting,  I  shall  now  give 
some  account  of  the  ornamental  department,  in 
which  is  included  the  imitating  of  woods  and 
marbles.  But  before  entering  upon  this  part  of 
my  subject  it  is  requisite  to  state,  that  besides 
the  pigments  already  enumerated,  other  two  are 
required  in  imitating  woods.  These  are  Van¬ 
dyke-brown  and  ivory -black.  The  first  of  these 
is  a  species  of  bog  earth  of  a  fine  deep  tone,  and 
semi-transparent ;  and  the  second  an  animal 
charcoal,  produced  by  burning  ivory  in  close 
vessels — a  pigment  as  valuable  to  the  professor 
12* 


138 


THE  LAWS  OF 


of  high  art  as  to  the  humble  imitator  of  nature’s 
more  minute  beauty  in  the  grains  of  wood. 

Copal  Varnish  is  also  a  most  important  mate¬ 
rial  connected  with  this  department  of  the  art  of 
house-painting,  and  also  sometimes  added  to  plain 
painting,  by  which  the  beauty  and  durability  of 
such  work  is  greatly  enhanced.  There  is  no 
material  in  which  the  painter  has  greater  lati¬ 
tude  as  to  quality  and  price  than  this  ;  *  and  cer¬ 
tainly  none  in  which  the  inexperienced  are  more 
likely  to  be  deceived,  or  the  selection  of  which 
requires  more  care  on  the  part  of  the  most  ex¬ 
perienced. 

The  best  copal  varnish  is  made  by  dissolving 
the  finest  gum-copal  in  clarified  linseed  oil  and 
spirits  of  turpentine.  The  process  by  which  the 
amalgamation  of  these  ingredients  takes  place 
is  both  difficult  and  uncertain  in  its  operation. 
When  this  varnish  is  made  so  as  to  dry  quickly, 
gum  anima  and  sugar-of-lead  are  added  to  the 
ingredients  already  named. 

Gum  copal  is  the  produce  of  three  or  four 
different  kinds  of  trees,  and  is  therefore,  in 
itself,  of  different  qualities.  But  all  its  varieties 
being  very  expensive,  many  other  ingredients 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


139 


are  introduced  into  this  varnish  by  the  manu¬ 
facturer,  in  order  to  cheapen  it.  The  various 
qualities  thus  produced  are  sold  to  the  painter 
at  prices  varying  from  eight  shillings  to  twenty- 
four  shillings  a  gallon.  This  is  the  latitude 
afforded  by  the  manufacturer,  but  it  is  well 
known  that  the  painter  can  reduce  the  cheapest 
quality  to  a  still  lower  degree,  by  the  introduc¬ 
tion  of  boiled  linseed  oil,  a  practice  the  bad 
effects  of  which  become  apparent  in  about  a 
year  after  the  work  is  finished.  ^ 

No  painter  can  judge  of  the  quality  of  copal 
varnish  by  merely  examining  it.  Indeed,  so 
uncertain  is  the  operation  of  making  it,  that  the 
manufacturer  himself  must  submit  it  "to  various 
practical  tests  before  he  can  with  safety  put  it 
into  the  hands  of  those  tradesmen  whose  custom 
he  is  anxious  to  retain.  From  this  cause  some 
of  the  larger  manufacturers  have  on  hand  from 
twenty  to  thirty  different  qualities  of  copal 
varnish,  which  they  apportion  to  their  various 
customers  according  to  the  price  given,  the 
quantity  generally  ordered,  and  the  certainty  of 
payment ;  often  making  the  price  of  an  inferior, 
equal  to  that  of  a  superior  quality,  in  order  to 
recover  the  risk  of  a  bad  debt. 


140 


THE  LAWS  OF 


This  varnish,  when  of  the  best  quality,  is  a 
clear  limpid  fluid,  capable  of  hardening  without 
losing  its  transparency.  It  gives  a  lustre  to  the 
work  upon  which  it  is  spread,  and  adds  greatly 
to  its  durability  in  defending  it  from  the  action 
of  the  air.  Eeally  good  varnish  becomes  quite 
hard,  does  not  crack,  does  not  become  discolored 
by  age,  and  does  not  lose  its  lustre  for  many 
years,  whilst  inferior  varnishes  either  do  not 
harden,  crack,  or  soon  lose  their  lustre,  and 
.expose  tp  decay  the  work  upon  which  they  are 
applied. 

A  coat  of  fine  copal  varnish,  applied  upon 
stippled  plain  painting,  not  only  greatly  en¬ 
hances  its  effect,  by  giving  it  the  appearance  of 
enamel,  but  renders  it  of  a  doubly  durable  nature, 
without  adding  greatly  to  the  expense. 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


141 


OF  IMITATIONS  OF  WOODS  AND  MARBLES. 

Many  people  of  highly  cultivated  minds  have 
a  dislike  to  imitations  of  woods  and  marbles  in 
house-painting.  This  must  arise  from  the  imper¬ 
fect  manner  in  which  these  imitations  are  often 
executed — the  most  monotonous  plainness  being 
more  endurable  to  a  correct  and  well-educated 
eye,  than  an  imperfect  imitation  of  nature. 

If  certain  woods  and  marbles  be  beautiful  in 
themselves,  and  if  they  be  chosen  for  the  fitting 
up  of  the  interiors  of  edifices,  as  much  on  ac¬ 
count  of  the  gratification  they  afford  the  eye,  as 
from  any  other  quality  they  possess,  what 
reasonable  objection  can  be  raised  to  the  appro¬ 
priate  substitution  of  a  good  imitation,  where 
the  reality  cannot  be  had  ?  What  are  the  lath- 
and-plaster  divisions,  and  the  stucco-mouldings 
and  rosettes  on  the  ceilings  of  a  building  in  any 
of  the  classical  styles  of  architecture,  but  an 


142 


THE  LAWS  OF 


imitation  of  the  manner  in  which  the  ancients 
constructed  their  marble  soffits  ?  How  often  do 
we  see,  in  other  styles  of  architecture,  the  con¬ 
struction  of  wood-work  imitated  in  lath  and 
plaster !  How  often  do  we  find  apparently  strong 
beams  supported  by  trusses  crossing  from  wall 
to  wall  of  an  apartment,  which  beams  seem  to 
support  others  of  a  lighter  kind  which  cross 
them  above,  and  form  the  ceiling  into  panels, 
all  constructed  of  lath  and  plaster !  Surely  ceil¬ 
ings  may  be  as  appropriately  painted  in  imitaton 
of  marble  or  wood  as  constructed  in  imitation 
of  these  materials !  Indeed,  when  the  material 
is  imitated  in  the  construction,  the  design  of  the 
architect  cannot  be  complete  until  the  painter’s 
imitation  follows.  (Note  C.) 

The  humble  art  of  imitating  woods  and  mar¬ 
bles  is  in  some  measure  allied  to  the  high  art 
of  portrait-painting,  in  being  also  an  imitative 
art,  and  requiring  a  degree  of  natural  genius  in 
the  grainer,  as  such  artists  are  technically  called, 
to  enable  him  to  avoid  the  fault  so  common  in 
both  arts,  namely,  that  of  producing  a  caricature 
of  the  object  of  which  he  attempts  to  produce 
a  correct  resemblance^  It  is  well  known  that 
there  are  a  great  number  of  painters  of  cheap 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


143 


portraits,  whose  professional  practice  lies  amongst 
a  class  of  society  not  remarkable  for  their  appre¬ 
ciation  of  works  of  art.  The  productions  of 
such  geniuses  are  almost  sure  to  stare  one  in  the 
face ’on  entering  the  public-room  of  an  hotel  or 
tavern,  in  the  caricatured  resemblance  of  the 
landlord,  accompanied  sometimes  by  his  beloved 
wife,  respected  mother,  or  interesting  children, 
all  as  stiff  and  flat  as  if  cut  out  of  pasteboard. 
It  requires  but  a  slight  knowledge  of  art  to  feel 
that  such  productions,  were  they  often  obtruded 
on  the  notice  of  the  well-educated  and  refined, 
would,  in  the  course  of  time,  embue  their  minds 
with  something  like  a  dislike  to  portrait-painting 
generally.  Fortunately  for  this  art,  however, 
the  works  of  this  class  of  portrait  painters  are 
not  often  necessarily  obtruded  upon  the  notice 
of  the  higher  classes. 

It  is  not  so  with  respect  to  the  artists  who 
imitate  that  species  of  nature’s  endless  beauties, 
which  the  yarious  kinds  of  woods  and  marbles 
exhibit;  the  mere  mechanic  and  the  man  of 
genius  in  this  branch  of  art  have  very  generally 
an  equal  chance  of  having  their  work  placed 
before  the  highest  classes  of  society,  occasionally 
in  their  own  mansions,  but  oftener  in  our 


144 


THE  LAWS  OF 


churches  and  public  buildings,  which  being 
generally  painted  according  to  what  is  errone¬ 
ously  supposed  to  be  the  cheapest  estimate,  are 
of  course  in  the  lowest  style  of  the  art. 

In  the  graining  department  there  are  artists 
who  excel  in  woods,  and  others  in  marbles ;  some 
excel  in  imitating  one  kind  of  wood  only,  some 
in  one  kind  of  marble,  others  in  two  or  three, 
and  very  rarely  one  who  excels  in  all  the  varie¬ 
ties  of  both.  The  wages  of  these  artists  vary 
from  twenty  shillings  to  forty  shillings  a  week, 
so  that,  in  sufficiently  large  establishments,  the 
value  of  the  work  may  be  greatly  enhanced  by 
placing  the  various  kinds  of  imitation  in  the 
hands,  of  the  best  qualified  artists.  It  often 
happens,  however,  that  the  consideration  of 
these,  and  all  other  facilities  for  producing 
superior  work  which  some  establishments  may 
possess,  are  set  aside,  and  offers  asked  from  five 
or  six  painters,  whose  materials,  workmen,  and 
style  of  execution,  differ  much  more  widely  than 
the  amounts  of  their  estimates.  Thus  it  often 
happens,  that  where  great  expense  has  been 
incurred  in  the  architectural  decoration  of  a 
building,  we  find  painting  of  the  lowest  class, 
both  as  to  want  of  durability  in  the  plain  paint- 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


145 


ing,  and  of  artistic  feeling  in  the  imitation- work 
and  other  branches  of  the  ornamental  depart¬ 
ment. 

To  abolish  imitations  of  woods  and  marbles  in 
house-painting  because  they  are  so  often  badly 
done,  would  be  a  retrograde  movement  in  this 
important  branch  of  the  useful  arts.  It  would 
be  much  better  for  people  offtaste  to  endeavor 
to  improve  the  practice  of  this  department  by 
taking  some  interest  in  it,  and  becoming  suffi¬ 
ciently  acquainted  with  its  nature  to  enable  them 
to  judge  between  the  good  and  the  bad,  the  true, 
and  theffalse. 

The  wood  or  plaster  upon  which  an  imitation 
of  wood  or  marble  is  to  be  produced,  is,  or  ought 
to  be,  painted  in  four  or  five  coats,  by  the  pro¬ 
cess  already  explained,  with  this  difference,  that 
the  last  coat  is  not  diluted  entirely  with  spirits 
of  turpentine,  but  partly  with  oil,  and  that  in 
applying  it,  a  still  greater  degree  of  care  is  re¬ 
quisite  to  avoid  leaving  any  marks  of  the  brush 
upon  its  surface.  It  thus  requires  much  more 
time  to  paint  work  for  grounds  of  this  descrip¬ 
tion  than  for  plain  finishing. 

In  imitating  oak  this  groundwork  is  tinted  of 
such  a  color  as  may  be  suitable  to  the  tone  of 
13 


146 


THE  LAWS  OF 


the  oak  intended  to  be  imitated;  for  there  is 
great  variety  in  the  wood  itself,  both  as  to  tone 
and  depth,  so  that  the  painter  can  adopt  that 
which  is  most  suitable  to  the  light,  the  aspect, 
and  the  furnishings  of  the  apartment.  The  tones 
of  this  wood  vary  from  a  tint  of  yellow,  yellow- 
hue,  or  orange-hue,  to  deep  shades  of  the  two 
latter,  for  all  those  tints  and  shades  are  to  be 
found  in  various  specimens  of  the  natural  wood. 
Hence  it  is,  that  imitation- oak  is  one  of  the  best 
media  for  a  general  arrangement  of  color  in  an 
apartment ;  and  the  more  especially,  because  this 
wood  may  be  imitated  upon  the  ceiling,  walls, 
or  wood-fittings  of  any  apartment — all  these 
parts  being  often  constructed  of  real  oak. 

'  When  the  groundwork  is  quite  dry,  a  thick 
unctuous  mixture  of  semi-transparent  paint  is 
prepared,  varying  in  its  tone  and  depth  according 
to  that  of  the  kind  of  oak  to  be  imitated.  This 
is  laid  equally  and  smoothly  over  the  ground¬ 
work,  after  which  a  toothed  instrument  made  of 
steel,  ivory,  horn,  or  wood  (for  all  these  kinds 
of  graining-combs,  as  they  are  technically  named, 
are  in  use),  is  drawn  through  this  composition, 
by  which  it  is  separated  upon  the  groundwork 
into  minute  portions,  representing  the  grain  of 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


147 


the  wood.  As  this  grain  is  open  or  close  in  the 
real  oak,  according  to  the  modes  in  which  the 
tree  has  been  cut,  the  graining- combs  are  made 
various  in  the  breadth  of  their  teeth. 

The  larger  transverse  septa  of  oak  are,  in  gene¬ 
ral,  very  distinct,  producing  beautiful  flowers 
when  cut  obliquely,  and  these  are  imitated  by 
the  painter  either  by  wiping  off  portions  of  the 
grained  paint  with  a  cloth,  or  washing  it  off  with 
spirits  of  turpentine.  This  part  of  the  process 
requires  some  taste  in  the  choice  of  the  configu¬ 
ration  of  the  champs,  or  flowers,  as  they  are 
called,  because  in  the  natural  wood  they  are 
found  in  great  variety. 

In  this  simple  matter  it  is  astonishing  to  mark 
the  variety  that  exists  in  the  tastes  of  the 
grainers,  and  how  an  apprentice  boy,  from  in¬ 
tuitive  feeling,  will  sometimes  surpass  the  most 
experienced  workman  in  giving  beautiful  forms 
to  the  flowers. 

When  the  grain  of  the  wood  is  thus  completed 
it  is  allowed  to  dry,  after  which  it  is  lightly 
shaded  with  transparent  brown,  either  in  oil  or 
water  color.  This  part  of  the  process  is  techni¬ 
cally  called  glazing,  and  completes  the  imitation, 
which  is  then  varnished  with  copal  varnish.  In 


148 


THE  LAWS  OF 


cheap  work  the  flowering,  the  glazing,  and  the 
varnishing  are,  one  or  other,  and  sometimes  all, 
dispensed  with,  there  being  nothing  above  the 
plain  painting  but  the  graining  substance,  whilst 
the  gronnd-work,  instead  of  being  four  or  five 
cos!fcs  of  good  paint,  is  produced  by  one  coat  of 
glue-size  and  two  coats  of  inferior  paint.  Boiled 
linseed- oil,  with  a  little  dryer  in  it,  is  sometimes 
used  on  such  work  instead  of  copal  varnish. 

Imitation  mahogany  is  painted  upon  grounds 
varying  from  a  low-toned  tint  of  orange  color  to 
a  deep  hue  of  yellowish  red.  The  grainer  pro¬ 
vides  himself  with  terra-di- Siena,  Turkey  umber, 
Vandyke  brown,  ivory -black,  and  lake,  each  be¬ 
ing  ground  to  an  impalpable  paste  in  water.  One 
or  more  of  these  he  mixes  with  small  beer,  or  any 
other  slightly  tenacious  liquid,  to  a  thin  stain. 
With  this  he  imitates  the  natural  pores  of  the 
wood,  by  laying  it  on  in  small  portions,  and, 
while  it  is  wet,  stippling  it  carefully  with  a  dry 
crush.  The  stain  is  then  made  deeper,  and  its 
tone  enriched  and  applied  in  masses,  to  repre¬ 
sent  the  beautifully  variable  shades  for  which 
mahogany  is  so  remarkable.  These  shades  he 
softens,  by  working  upon  them  slightly  with  a 
brush  made  of  badgers’  hair,  called  a  softener, 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


149 


which,  operation  must  be  performed  with  des¬ 
patch,  as  the  process  must  be  completed  upon 
each  divisible  portion  of  the  work  while  the 
stain  is  in  a  fluid  state.  The  shading  is  often 
greatly  enhanced  by  being  produced  with  two 
tones  of  staining-color  simultaneously — the  one 
light  and  cool,  and  the  other  deep  and  warm ;  but 
to  perform  this  propely,  requires  great  taste  and 
dexterity  on  the  part  of  the  artist. 

Immediately  after  this  shading  is  dry,  the 
reeded  grain  of  the  wood  is  given  by  a  light 
cool-toned  stain,  in  a  thin  flat  brush  being  lightly 
drawn  over  the  shades  and  gently  softened  with 
the  badger-hair  brush.  Should  the  shades  be 
deep,  the  whole  is  then  secured  by  a  coat  of 
some  thin  binding  substance  that  will  sufficiently 
penetrate  the  water-color  and  bind  it  to  the 
ground- work,  but  if  light,  the  varnish  itself  will 
be  sufficient.  This  ought  to  be  of  the  finest 
quality  of  copal  varnish. 

Satin-wood  is  imitated  by  a  similar  process  to 
that  employed  in  imitating  mahogany,  with  the 
exception  of  that  part  which  produces  the  effect 
of  pores.  The  ground- work  for  satin-wood  is  a 
light  tint  of  yellow. 

Maple-wood  is  imitated  in  the  same  way.  The 

13* 


150 


THE  LAWS  OP 


effect  of  the  small  bird- eye  knots,  and  apparent 
light  and  shade  by  which  they  are  accompanied, 
being  produced  by  the  points  and  sides  of  the 
artist’s  fingers  while  the  stain  is  in  a  fluid  state. 
The  ground  is  a  very  light  tint  of  yellowish  pink 
or  cream-color. 

Some  artists  introduce  the  shades  and  veins  of 
the  heart  of  the  tree,  especially  in  imitating 
Spanish  mahogany  and  maple-wood;  but  this 
requires  to  be  done  with  great  taste  and  judg¬ 
ment,  otherwise,  plain  shades  and  veins  are  much 
to  be  preferred. 

Imitation  rose- wood  is  not  so  often  introduced 
in  house-painting  as  it  used  to  be.  It  is  done 
upon  a  ground-work  of  a  deep  hue  of  yellowish 
red;  and  the  stain  is  made  of  ivory-black,  and 
applied  with  thin  flat  graining-brushes,  like  the 
over-grain  of  mahogany,  and  sometimes  with 
sable-hair  pencils  set  in  a  case.  It  is  afterwards 
shaded,  secured,  and  finished  with  the  finest 
copal  varnish. 

Imitation  oak  has  been  greatly  used  in  halls, 
staircases,  libraries,  and  dining-rooms,  and  it  will 
be  observed,  from  the  description  of  the  process, 
that  it  must  be  very  durable,  especially  that  part 
of  it  by  which  the  pores  or  grain  of  the  wood  is 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING.  151 

represented.  The  varnish  nsed  upon  it  is  not 
necessarily  of  the  finest  quality,  but  ought  still 
to  be  unadulterated  copal  varnish.  When,  how¬ 
ever,  it  is  desired  to  have  a  superior  lustre,  or  to 
be  polished  in  the  style  of  a  coach  panel,  which  it 
is  sometimes,  the  finest  quality  only  should  be 
used. 

Imitation  mahogany,  from  its  greater  beauty, 
and  from  the  growing  taste  for  full-toned  color  ¬ 
ing,  is  now  often  employed,  instead  of  oak,  as  a 
decorative  painting  fqr  the  wood-work  of  such 
apartments  as  I  have  just  enumerated.  Mahog¬ 
any,  like  oak,  is  to  be  found  of  various  tints, 
shades,  and  tones  of  its ’particular  hue.  Its  imi¬ 
tation  may,  therefore,  be  adapted  to  almost  any 
style  of  furnishing. 

Imitations  of  maple- wood  and  satin-wood  are 
used  almost  exclusively  on  the  wood-work  of 
drawing-rooms  and  boudoirs,  and  although  they 
cannot  be  varied  in  tone  to  the  extent  of  either 
oak  or  mahogany,  yet  there  is  a  sufficient  latitude 
to  enable  the  decorator  to  render  either  of  them 
harmonious  with  the  peculiar  tones  of  the  colors 
with  which  they  are  to  be  associated.  The  finest 
copal  varnish  should  always  be  used  upon  imita- 


152 


THE  LAWS  OF 


• 

tions  of  all  the  fine  kinds  of  woods,  by  wbicb  tbeir 
durability  and  beauty  will  be  greatly  enhanced. 

To  imitate  marble  well,  requires,  on  the  part 
of  the  artist,  an  intuitive  feeling  for  beauty  in 
both  form  and  color.  The  veins  of  some  marbles 
often  exhibit  great  beauty  in  their  ramifications, 
and  often  produce  very  beautiful  forms  by  their 
intersecting  each  other :  such  as  the  white-veined, 
the  Siena,  the  black  and  gold,  and  some  others. 
Marbles  of  the  breccia  kind,  such  as  the  verd - 
antique ,  the  rosso-antico ,  and  almost  all  other  con¬ 
glomerates  of  the  same  description,  are  masses 
of  various  indefinite  forms,  and  the  success  of 
the  artist  depends  greatly  upon  the  character  he 
gives  these  forms,  and  the  skill  with  which  he 
at  the  same  time  imparts  to  the  mass  that  dis- 

4 

tinguishing  feature  in  all  nature’s  works — infinite 
variety. 

The  imitating  of  marbles  enables  the  house- 
painter  to  break  his  colors,  and  thus  impart  to 
them  a  quality,  the  value  of  which  is  well  known 
to  professors  of  the  higher  branches  of  the  art  of 
painting.  The  colors  of  marbles  are  various,  and 
amongst  them  are  to  be  found  representatives  of 
the  six  positive  colors,  in  various  degrees  of 
intensity  of  hue,  of  tint, 'and  of  shade.  For 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


153 


instance,  we  have  yellow  and  orange  in  some  of 
their  most  beautiful  varieties  in  giallo-antico ,  or 
Siena;  varieties  of  red  in  rosso-antico ;  most 
beautiful  blue,  in  various  tones  down  to  clear 
gray,  in  lapis  lazuli  ;  and  equally  beautiful  greens 
in  malachite ,  verd-antique  and  serpentine  marbles. 
Probably  there  is  not  any  positively  purple 
marble,  yet  there  is  one  of  the  breccia  kinds 
which  possesses  hues  of  that  color  of  sufficient 
power  to  harmonize  as  a  contrasting  color,  either 
with  giallo-antico  or  Siena* 

On  the  negative  side  we  have  white,  gray,  and 
black  marbles.  So  that  by  good  imitations  of 
marble,  the  house-painter  can  introduce  every 
variety  of  color,  naturally  broken  and  tempered. 

Marbles  are  imitated  by  various  processes,  but 
they  require  in  the  first  instance  a*  good  and  sub¬ 
stantial  ground- work  of  four  or  five  coats  of  plain 
painting,  smoothly  wrought. 

White-veined  marble  is„  imitated  by  drawing 
the  veins  with  a  charcoal  crayon  through  a  coat 

*  The  only  specimen  I  know  of  this  marble  is  an  antique 
chimney-piece  at  Floors  Castle,  the  seat  of  his  Grace  the 
Duke  of  Roxburghe.  It  has  been  imitated  on  the  columns 
of  the  telling-room  and  lobby  of  the  Commercial  Banking 
Company’s  premises  at  Edinburgh. 


154 


THE  LAWS  OF 


of  wet  white  paint,  into  which  they  are  blended 
with  a  dry  brush  of  an  oblong  form  made  of  the 
finest  bristles,  and  called  a  marbler.  When  quite 
dry,  it  receives  a  thin  coat  of  white-lead,  ground 
in  spirits  of  turpentine,  and  fixed  by  copal 
varnish  of  the  finest  quality,  but  not  so  strongly 
as  to  have  a  lustre  when  dry. 

White  marble  is  generally  imitated  wherever 
the  stucco-work  represents  carving ;  but  of  all 
marbles  it  is  the  most  difficult  to  imitate  success¬ 
fully,  because  it  is  impossible  by  paint  to  give 
the  imitation  that  degree  of  translucency  which 
is  one  of  the  greatest  beauties  of  the  real  marble. 

Siena  and  giallo-antico  marbles  are  imitated  in 
a  somewhat  similar  manner.  Light  tints  of  yel¬ 
low  and  orange-color  are  blended  together  upon 
an  equally  light  ground- work,  and  the  veins 
drawn  through  them  while  wet,  with  crayons 
made  of  colored  pigments.  These  veins  are 
softened  into  the  tints  by  going  over  them 
lightly  with  the  brush  called  the  marbler,  just 
described.  When  this  part  of  the  process  is 
dry,  the  white  crystalline  specks  and  veins  are 
added  by  means  of  white-lead  ground  in  spirits 
of  turpentine,  fixed  with  a  little  copal  varnish, 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


155 


and  applied  with,  quill  feathers.  When  this  is 
dry,  the  whole  is  varnished. 

To  imitate  verd-antique  and  other  breccia 
marbles,  the  *  colors  are  laid  upon  the  ground¬ 
work  in  masses,  and,  while  wet,  they  are  mottled 
with,  crumpled  paper,  cloth,  or  sponge.  The 
masses  of  white  and  black  are  by  some  artists 
produced  by  paper  torn  into  the  forms  re¬ 
quired,  moistened  with  water,  and  stuck  upon 
the  ground-work,  during  the  mottling  process. 
This  is  taken  off  whenever  that  process  is 
completed.  Other  artists  produce  these  masses 
simply  by  paintings  them  above  the  mottling 
with  camel-hair  pencils. 

The  practice  of  marble  painters,  however,  is  so 
various  in  respect  to  the  imitating  of  these  par¬ 
ticular  kinds  of  marble,  that  nothing  more  than 
the  above  general  idea  of  it  can  be  given.  In  all 
marble  painting,  great  care  should  be  taken  to 
avoid  the  use  of  oil  as  much  as  possible,  because  . 
it  tends  to  change  the  colors  and  produce  tawni¬ 
ness,  so  that  wherever  it  is  practicable,  the 
vehicle  ought  to  be  a  mixture  of  spirits  of  tur¬ 
pentine  and  copal  varnish  only.  But  it  requires 
great  dexterity  and  considerable  practice  to  work 
without  oil,  owing  to  the  volatility  of  the  spirits 
of  turpentine  and  the  quick  setting  of  the  varnish. 


156 


THE  LAWS  OF 


ON  THE  VARIOUS  MODES  OF  DECORATING 
THE  CEILINGS  AND  WALLS  OF  DWELLING- 
HOUSES. 

* 

Although  the  dwelling-houses  of  the  ancients 
do  not  seem  to  have  been  remarkable  for  interior 
comfort,  yet  we  find,  from  the  ruins  of  Pompeii 
and  Herculaneum,  that  the  Romans  at  an  early 
period  of  their  history  were  not  only  acquainted 
with  the  art  of  plastering  interior  walls,  but  also 
the  art  of  rendering  plaster  impervious  to  damp¬ 
ness.  W e  find  from  the  ruins  of  the  Alhambra 
and  other  architectural  remains  of  the  ancient 
Moors,  that  that  remarkable  people  were  like¬ 
wise  acquainted  with  these  arts.  (Note  H.) 

But  in  this  country  plastering  and  stucco-work 
seems  not  to  have  come  into  anything  like  gene¬ 
ral  use,  as  an  interior  decoration,  till  within  the 
last  century ;  although  we  know  it  was  intro¬ 
duced  above  three  hundred  years  ago. 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


157 


Previously  to  the  introduction  of  these  arts 
into  this  country,  the  ceilings  of  the  apartments 
in  our  dwelling-houses  generally  consisted  either 
of  the  boards  upon  which  the  lead-work  or 
slating  of  the  roof  was  laid  with  the  couples 
which  supported  them,  or,  where  one  apartment 
was  surmounted  by  another,  of  the  planks  which 
formed  the  floor  of  the  latter,  and  the  joists  which 
supported  them.  In  the  first  case,  the  couples, 
and  the  beams  which  united  them,  were  occa¬ 
sionally  ornamented  by  carving,  as  in  Westmin¬ 
ster  Hall,  and  in  many  other  ancient  edifices  in 
England,  and  they  were  occasionally  further 
adorned  by  varnishing,  painting,  and  gilding. 
And  in  the  second  case,  the  ceiling  was  often 
constructed  under  the  joists  by  a  framing  of 
woodwork  formed  into  panels,  which  were  either 
filled  with  wood  or  stretched  canvas.  When  the 
former  was  employed,  the  whole  ceiling  was 
often  oiled  or  varnished,  and  the  panels  embla¬ 
zoned  with  armorial  devices;  but  when  the 
panels  were  filled  with  canvas,  it  was  painted  all 
over,  and  decorated  with  various  devices :  some¬ 
times  scripture  pieces,  or  historical  subjects,  were 
painted  upon  them,  and  specimens  have  been 
found,  with  subjects  in  which  the  Christian  and 
14 


158 


THE  LAWS  OP 


heathen  mythology  are  mixed.  Many  cnrious 
specimens  of  this  style  of  decoration  still  exist 
in  Scotland;  perhaps  the  most  remarkable  is  one 
in  a  large  room  at  Pinkie  Honse,  the  seat  of  Sir 
John  Hope,  Bart.,  which  is  decorated  with 
mythological  subjects. and  arabesque  ornaments. 

One  of  an  earlier  description,  decorated  with 
national  devices,  exists  in  a  tolerable  state  of 
preservation  in  the  "ruins  of  Falkland  Palace, 
others  in  some  of  the  most  ancient  apartments  of 
Holyrood  Palace,  and  in  the  small  room  in  Edin¬ 
burgh  Castle  where  James  the  Ylth  was  born. 
A  very  curious  specimen  of  this  style  of  decora¬ 
tion  was  lately  found  in  a  house  on  the  Castle-hill 
of  Edinburgh,  once  occupied  by  Mary  of  Guise, 
a  portion  of  which  is  preserved  in  the  Antiqua¬ 
rian  Museum  of  Edinburgh. 

At  this  period  the  interior  surfaces  of  walls 
were  generally  lined  with  wood  framed  into 
panels,  and  called  wainscoting.  This,  in  the 
generality  of  apartments,  reached  from  the  floor 
to  the  ceiling,  being  divided  about  three  feet 
from  the  floor  by  a  moulding  called  a  surbase. 
This  wainscoting  of  walls  continued  in  use  long 
after  the  introduction  of  plastered  ceilings ;  and 
in  ordinary  houses  was  painted  white,  the  paint 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


159 


being  mixed  with  a  coarse  kind  of  varnish,  made 
by  dissolving  common  resin  in  spirits  of  turpen¬ 
tine.  In  the  panels  over  the  doors  and  chimney- 
piece  were  often  introduced  landscapes  or  other 
pictures,  either  in  color,  or  in  shades  of  brown  or 
gray.  When  a  high  style  of  decoration  was  re¬ 
quired,  the  whole  panelling  on  the  walls  was 
similarly  embellished,  a  specimen  of  which  still 
remains  in  excellent  preservatioiyn  the  Council- 
room  of  George  Watson’s  hospital  near  Edin¬ 
burgh. 

It  seems  the  walls  of  the  room  at  Pinkie  House, 
already  referred  to,  were  decorated  in  a  similar 
style  with  the  ceiling ;  but  the  room  being  used 
as  a  receptacle  for  the  wounded  at  the  battle  of 
Prestonpans,  the  painting  was  so  disfigured,  and 
the  woodwork  so  injured,  that  the  whole  was  re¬ 
moved,  and  plain  finishing  substituted. 

In  the  mansions  of  the  nobility  this  wains¬ 
coting  was  only  carried  a  short  way  up  the  wall, 
generally  from  three  to  six  feet,  according  to  the 
height  of  the  room.  The  space  between  the 
wainscoting  and  the  cornice  was  hung  either  with 
tapestry,  silk  damask,  or  embossed  leather.  The 
manner  in  which  tapestry  and  damask  were  hung, 
admitted  of  their  being  taken  down  for  the  pur- 


160 


THE  LAWS  OF 


pose  of  being  cleaned  and  aired,  a  process  which 
the  embossed  leather  did  not  require,  as  its  sur¬ 
face  was  impervious  to  moisture  and  easily 
washed.  Plastering,  as  already  observed,  was 
introduced  into  this  country  upwards  of  three 
hundred  years  ago,  and  in  some  of  the  early 
specimens  it  seems  to  have  been  used  instead  of 
canvas  for  filling  in  the  panels  of  ceilings.  In 
this  manner  it Jcias  been  employed  on  the  ceiling 
of  the  Chapel  Royal  of  St  James’s,  the  panels  of 
which  are  formed  of  wooden  framework  upon  a 
plaster  ground.  This  ceiling  was  painted  by 
Holbein  in  1540,  and  I  believe  is  still  in  a  state 
of  tolerable  preservation. 

Prom  that  period,  down  to  the  middle  of  the 
seventeenth  century,  many  beautiful  specimens 
of  ornamental  stucco-work,  in  the  Elizabethan 
style,  were  introduced  into  England,  and  a  few 
into  Scotland.  Of  the  latter,  there  are  two  in 
excellent  preservation  at  Winton  House,  the 
mansion  of  Lord  Ruthven,  and  other  two  in 
Moray  House  in  Edinburgh.  But  about  the 
middle  of  the  seventeenth  century,  a  new  style 
seems  to  have  bee#,  introduced,  of  a  much  bolder 
character,  composed  principally  of  fruit,  flowers, 
and  scroll-work  in  high  relief.  Specimens  of 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


161 


this  style  of  decoration  exist  in  Holyrood  Palace, 
and  in  many  of  the  mansions  of  the  nobility  and 
gentry  throughout  Scotland. 

The  earliest  specimens  of  walls  finished  in 
plaster  that  are  to  be  met  with,  seem  to  have 
been  intended  exclusively  for  painting  upon,  as 
the  surface  is  made  of  an  even  roughness,  to  the 
same  extent  as  the  twilled  canvas  used  in 
portrait  painting.  An  excellent  specimen  of  this 
style  is  still  in  good  preservation  in  Milton  House, 
Edinburgh.  It  was  painted  by  a  French  artist 
called  De  la  Cour,  a  pupil  of  the  celebrated 
Watteau.  Judging  from  existing  specimens  of 
the  works  of  De  la  Cour,  he  seems  to  have  been 
pretty  largely  employed  by  the. Scottish  nobility. 

Plastering  of  ceilings  and  walls,  with  stucco 
ornaments  in  various  styles,  is  now  the  almost 
universal  mode  of  finishing  the  apartments  of 
dwelling-houses  and  public  buildings,  and  I  have 
already  observed,  that  the  most  effectual  method 
of  rendering  plaster-work  durable,  and  the  apart¬ 
ments  in  which  it  is  employed  truly  wholesome, 
is  to  have  it  thoroughly  painted. 

In  treating  of  imitations  of  woods  and  marbles, 
I  have  likewise  observed,  regarding  the  painting 
of  plastered  ceilings,  that  when  constructed  in 
14* 


162 


THE  LAWS  OF 


imitation  of  any  other  material,  they  ought  also 
to  be  painted  in  imitation  of  it.  When  plainly 
finished,  however,  they  may  be  painted  in  any 
way,  either  in  tints  of  color  or  pure  white. 
Sometimes  they  are  finished  in  flatted  painting 
of  four  or  five  coats,  as  already  described;  at 
others,  merely  primed5  with  one  or  two  coats, 
and  finished  in  distemper  color.  This  latter 
mode  of  finishing  is  more  aerial  in  its  effect  than 
flatted  painting,  but  not  so  durable. 

Distemper  is  a  word  derived  from  the  French 
u  detrempe,”  meaning  a  preparation  of  opaque 
colors  ground  in  water,  and  fixed  by  the  admix¬ 
ture  of  -size,  paste,  or  gum.  Coloring  plaster 
work  in  distemper,  differs  from  fresco  painting, 
inasmuch  as  the  latter  is  applied  while  the  plaster 
is  quite  wet,  and  is  thereby  incorporated  with  it, 
whilst  the  former  is  applied  when  the  plaster  is 
quite  dry,  and  lasts  only  so  long  as  the  animal 
or  vegetable  substance  which  binds  it  withstands 
the  action  of  the  atmosphere,  and  this  is  seldom 
more  than  two  years,  unless  when  the  surface  of 
the  plaster  has  been  rendered  impervious  to 
absorption  by  one  or  two  coats  of  paint. 

Ceilings,  when  richly  ornamented  in  stucco¬ 
work,  are  often  heightened  with  gilding,  and 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


163 


picked  out  with  positive  colors,  as  a  preparation 
for  which  they  must  be  painted  in  five  or  six 
coats,  and  flatted.  The  process  of  gilding  has 
not  yet  been  described,  and  I  shall  therefore  give 
a  short  account  of  it  in  this  place. 

Gilding,  as  applied  in  decoration,  is  performed 
by  the  following  process : — 

Yery  fine  ochre  is  ground  in  linseed  oil  to  an 
impalpable  paste,  and  then  reduced  to  a  thin 
consistency  by  the  addition  of  more  oil,  and 
placed  in  a  warm  temperature  for  about  twelve 
months,  in  order  to  render  it  viscid,  and  impart 
to  it  the  property  of  retaining  a  degree  of  tena¬ 
city  for  several  hours  after  it  is  dry.  This  is 
called  oil  gold-size,  and  with  it  all  the  parts 
intended  to  be  gilded  are  painted,  and  will  be 
ready  to  receive  the  gold-leaf  in  from  twelve  to 
eighteen  hours  thereafter.  Gold,  from  its  great 
beauty  and  durability,  is  the  most  valuable  of 
all  ornamental  substances;  but  its  weight  and 
high  price  would  render  its  use  in  decoration 
exceedingly  limited,  were  it  not  that  from  its 
extraordinary  density  and  malleability  it  may 
be  made  to  cover  a  larger  surface  than  an  equal 
quantity  of  any  other  body. 

The  leaf  gold  generally  used  is  in  thickness 


164 


THE  LAWS  OF 


not  more  than  one  two  hundred  and  eighty 
thousandth  of  an  inch,  hut  in  special  cases  it  is 
made  thicker. 

Gold  leaf,  from  its  extreme  thinness,  is  very 
difficult  to  handle,  and  its  proper  treatment  is 
the  result  of  much  practice  and  great  care  on 
the  part  of  the  workman.  It  is  received  from 
the  manufacturer  in  leaves  of  about  three  inches 
square,  which  are  placed  between  the  leaves  of 
small  books,  generally  if  not  always,  made  from 
old  printed  paper,  each  of  which  contains 
twenty -five  leaves,  and  is  technically  called  by 
painters  and  gilders  a  book  of  gold.  But  the 
gold-beater  always  calculates  by  the  thousand 
leaves.  The  leaves  of  these  small  books  are 
rubbed  with  red  chalk,  to  prevent  the  leaves  of 
gold  from  adhering  to  them. 

The  tools  by  which  leaf  gold  is  applied  by 
the  decorator  are  a  cushion,  a  knife,  a  tip,  some 
cotton  wool,  and  a  dusting-brush.  The  cushion 
is  a  small  thin  board,  the  upper  side  of  which 
is  covered  first  with  fine  cloth,  and  next  with 
thick  leather  with  the  rough  side  outwards ;  one 
half  of  the  surface  of  the  cushion  is  surrounded 
with  a  screen  of  parchment  about  three  inches 
high,  and  on  the  under  side  of  the  board  are 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


165 


fixed  two  pieces  of  leather,  one  to  secure  the 
thumb  of  the  workman’s  left  hand,  upon  which, 
while  in  use,  it  rests,  and  the  other  to  receive 
the  knife.  The  knife  itself  is  about  six  inches 
long,  quite  straight,  and  having  a  smooth  but 
not  very  sharp  edge.  The  tip  is  a  thin  layer  of 
camel  hair,  the  ends  of  which  are  fixed  between 
two  cards  of  about  three  inches  long,  leaving 
about  two  inches  of  the  hair  free ;  and  a  dry 
painting-brush,  called  a  sash-tool,  answers  the 
purpose  of  a  duster.  The  decorator  opens  a 
book,  and  allows  the  leaves  of  the  gold  to  fall 
from  between  those  of  the  paper,  one  by  one, 
upon  the  screened  half  of  the  cushion,  to  the 
number  of  about  ten  or  twelve,  less  or  more 
according  to  the  work  to  be  done,  but  never 
more  than  the  full  number  contained  in  onp 
book.  He  then  takes  the  cushion  upon  the 
thumb  of  his  left  hand,  the  tip  between  the  same 
thumb  and  fore-finger,  and  the  knife  in  his  right 
hand ;  upon  the  point  of  the  latter  he  lifts  a  leaf 
of  gold  from  the  screened  end  of  the  cushion, 
and  flattens  it  on  the  other  end  by  blowing 
gently  upon  it.  He  then  cuts  it  with  the  gold- 
knife  into  such  pieces  as  the  work  requires, 
takes  the  tip  between  the  foije-finger  and  thumb 


166 


THE.  LAWS  OF 


of  his  right  hand,  placing  the  knife  between 
those  *  of  the  left,  and  with  the  former  he  lifts 
the  pieces  of  gold-leaf  from  the  cushion  and 
lays  them  upon  the  parts  which  have  been 
painted  with  the  gold-size.  The  hair  of  the  tip 
is  made  slightly  tenacious  by  being  drawn 
through  the  hair  of  the  head,  and  thus  it  easily 
lifts  the  gold-leaf  from  the  cushion.  This  is 
called  oil-gilding,  in  contradistinction  to  bur¬ 
nished  and  mat  gilding,  and  is  the  only  kind 
practised  by  the  house-painter.  It  is  washable, 
and  when  properly  done,  will  •  last  for  upwards 
of  a  century. 

When  the  stucco  enrichments  on  ceilings  and 
cornices  are  heightened  with  gilding  they  are 
sometimes,  but  not  so  often  as  they  ought  to  be, 
picked  out  with  positive  colors.  There  is  no 
branch  of  the  painter’s  art  that  requires  more 
care  and  judgment  than  this.  If  the  colors  be 
used  in  their  full  intensity,  crudity  and  harsh¬ 
ness  are  likely  to  be  the  result.  Tempering  and 
balancing  are  as  much  required  in  the  mixing 
and  arranging  of  the  colors  upon  a  picked-out 
ceiling,  as  they  are  in  the  mixing  and  arranging 
of  those  employed  in  a  picture.  These  colors 
are  greatly  improved,  and  have  much  the  appear- 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING.  167  * 

ance  and  quality  of  fresco  painting,  by  being 
reduced  from  tbeir  dry  state  to  paint  by  spirits 
of  turpentine  only,  and  fixed  by  tbe  admixture 
of  a  little  of  tbe  finest  copal.  When  mixed  of 
ordinary  oil-colors  they  are  almost  certain  to 
change,  and  to  become  heavy  in  their  effect ;  but, 
treated  as  I  have  described,  they  never  change. 
Their  proper  management,  however,  both  in  the 
mixing  and  laying  on,  requires  care  and  experi¬ 
ence. 

I  now  come  to  the  various '  modes  of  deco¬ 
rating  the  plastered  walls  of  our  ordinary  apart¬ 
ments  ;  of  which  modes  there  are  two  now  in 
general  use,  namely,  painting  and  paper-hanging. 
Having  already  made  the  reader  acquainted  with 
the  former,  I  shall  now  give  some  account  of 
the  latter. 

Paper-Hangings  were,  I  believe,  first  im¬ 
ported  into  Britain  from  China,  and  next  from 
France,  and  still  continue  to  be  imported  from 
both  those  countries.  They  were  begun  to  be 
manufactured  in  this  country  about  two  hun¬ 
dred  years  ago,  at  first  in  a  very  rude  style,  but 
latterly  with  more  care  and  refinement,  though 
much  still  remains  to  be  done  by  our  paper- 
stainers  to  raise  the  art  to  that  degree  of  excel- 


168 


THE  LAWS  OF 


* 


lence  to  which,  it  has  been  brought  in  France. 
Paper-hangings  were  first  used  in  imitation  of, 
or  as  a  cheap  substitute  for  the  tapestry  or 
damask  previously  in  use,  and  were  glued  to 
coarse  canvas,  and  stretched  upon  the  wall  in  a 
similar  manner  to  those  more  expensive  fabrics — 
hence  the  name  paper-hangings.  Now,  how¬ 
ever,  the  paper  is  fixed  to  the  plaster  by  means 
of  glue  and  paste ;  a  solution  of  the  former  being 
applied  to  the  plaster,  and  the  back  of  the  paper 
being  thickly  coated  with  the  latter.  There  are 
various  kinds  of  paper-hangings  manufactured 
in  this  country,  all  of  which  are  made  in  pieces 
of  twelve  yards  long.  The  cheapest  are  made 
of  coarse  papers,  colored  in  the  pulp  like  blot¬ 
ting  paper,  but  of  various  tints,  and  upon  this 
a  pattern  of  a  uniform  color  is  printed,  in  dis¬ 
temper,  by  a  stamp  used  in  the  hand,  or  by  a 
cylinder.  * 

The  next  kind,  and  that  which  is  in  most  gene¬ 
ral  use,  is  made  of  various  qualities  of  cartridge- 
paper,  upon  which  a  solid  flat  ground  of  dis¬ 
temper  is  laid,  and  the  pattern  stamped  upon  it 
either  by  machinery  or  by  the  hand.  According 
to  the  quality  of  the  cartridge  paper  and  ground¬ 
work,  as  also  the  number  of  times  it  must  go 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


169 


through  the  stamping  process  to  produce  the 
various  tints  and  shading  of  the  pattern,  is  the 
price  of  this  kind  of  paper-hanging  regulated. 
The  next  class  is  composed  of  those  that  have 
satin  grounds,  the  lustre  of  which  is  produced 
by  friction.  These  grounds  are  often  embossed 
with  patterns,  some  of  which  represent  watered 
silk,  and  others  a  flowered  or  striped  pattern ; 
upon  this  a  colored  pattern  is  printed  in  dis¬ 
temper,  in  the  same  way  as  upon  the  plain 
grounds.  This  class  of  paper  hangings  is  of  all 
others  the  best,  as '  it  is  the  most  impervious  to 
the  absorption  of  moisture  from  the  atmosphere — 
the  most  easily  cleaned,  and,  decidedly,  the  most 
durable.  The  next  highest  priced  paper  is  that 
called  flocked  paper,  which  is  produced  by  the 
pattern  being  stamped  on  any  description  of 
groundwork  with  japan  gold-size,  and  dyed  wool 
minced  into  powder  shaken  over  it  while  the 
pattern  is  still  wet.  This  woollen  powder, 
which  is  called  flock,  then  udheres  to  the  japan 
gold-size  which  forms  the  figure  of  the  pattern. 
When  this  is  dry  the  loose  flock  is  dusted  off, 
and  the  pattern  is  generally  enriched  by  the 
application  of  additional  blocks,  with  color  or 
dry,  in  which  latter  case  the  flock  receives  an 
15 


170 


THE  LAWS  OF 


impression  winch,  considerably  enhances  its 
effect.  The  next  class  are  thbse  in  which  the 
pattern  is  either  wholly  or  partially  produced 
by  metal :  the  metal  is  either  applied  in  powder, 
in  the  same  manner  as  flock,  or  in  leaves  like 
those  of  gold.  This  metallic  powder  is  bisul- 
phurate  of  tin,  and  the  leaf  metal  is  made  of 
fine  copper,  or  a  mixture  of  copper  with  zinc, 
tin,  or  some  other  metal  that  will  give  it  more 
the  color  of  gold  than  when  in  its  native  state. 
These  metals  are  often  added  to  colored  and 
flocked  patterns.  Paper-hangings  upon  which 
leaf  metal  is  employed,  are  much  more  ex¬ 
pensive  than  those  done  with  the  metallic 
powder;  but  the  leaf  kind  has  much  greater 
brilliancy,  and  is  more  durable  than  the  other. 

Having  endeavored  to  make  the  reader  ac¬ 
quainted  with  the  nature  of  the  covering  which 
a  plastered  wall  receives  from  the  operations  of 
the  painter,  when  the  proper  materials  and 
workmanship  are  applied,  I  shall  now  attempt 
to  explain  the  nature  of  that  which  the  paper- 
hanger’s  art  affords.  Let  us  take,  for  example, 
what  is  termed  a  body-ground  paper — one  of 
those  sold  at  from  three  to  five  shillings  a  piece 
of  twelve  lineal  yards,  which  are  equal,  when 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


171 


hung,  to  little  more  than  six  superficial  square 
yards  of  painting',  and  examine  the  nature  of  the 
clothing  which  the  wall  has  received  when  the 
operation  of  hanging  it  has  been  completed. 

The  first  part  of  the  process,  as  already 
noticed,  is  to  give  the  plaster  upon  which  the 
paper  is  to  be  fixed,  a  coat  of  size:  this  is  an 
animal  substance,  liable  to  be  softened  by  the 
humidity  of  the  atmosphere,  and  to  consequent 
putrefaction.  Above  this  we  have  the  thick 
coating  of  paste  by  which  the  paper  is  fastened 
to  the  plaster.  This  paste  is  a  vegetable  sub¬ 
stance,  also  liable  to  be  softened  by  dampness, 
and  consequently  subject  to  mildew  and  rot.  The 
paper  itself  is  composed  of  a  pulp  made  from 
hemp,  or  cotton  rags,  hardened  by  size,  and  it  is 
therefore  likewise  easily  softened  by  moisture, 
and  subject  to  putrefaction  and  mildew;  while 
the  distemper-color  which  forms  the  pattern  and 
its  ground-work,  is,  like  all  that  is  under  it, 
easily  softened  by  absorbing  the  humidity  of 
the  atmosphere.  Now,  I  dare  say  most  of  my 
readers  may  have  occasionally  met  with  writing- 
paper,  the  odor  of  which  was  very  unpleasant, 
and  when  they  reflect  that  this  odor  always  arises 
from  the  size  used  in  hardening  the  paper,  having 


172 


THE  LAWS  OF 


become  putrid  from  dampness,  they  will  easily 
comprehend  what  effect  the  ntoisture  from  the 
atmosphere  must  have  upon  a  papered  wall 
where  so  much  size  has  been  necessarily  em¬ 
ployed.  Although  most  people  know  how  easily 
paper  mildews  when  kept  damp  for  a  few  days, 
and  that  the  exhalations  from  putrid  animal  sub¬ 
stances  and  mildewed  vegetable  substances  are 
both  very  unwholesome  ;  yet  few  seem  to  reflect 
that  this  unwholesomeness  may  arise  from  the 
improper  use  of  paper-hangings  on  the  interior 
walls  of  their  dwellings. 

In  bed-rooms  and  drawing-rooms,  into  which 
the  external  air  is  not  necessarily  admitted,  un¬ 
less  in  dry  weather,  and  in  which  the  temperature 
is  kept  pretty  uniform,  no  injurious  effect  may 
take  place  from  the  use  of  paper-hangings,  es¬ 
pecially  with  respect  to  those  that  are  satin- 
grounded  ;  yet  it  is  often  found,  in  removing 
old  paper  from  the  walls  of  such  apartments, 
that  there  are  considerable  masses  of  rottenness 
and  mildew  between  it  and  the  plaster.  This 
may  very  generally  arise  from  accidental. damp¬ 
ness,  and  in  some  cases  may  be  accounted  for  by 
the  apartment  being  long  unoccupied,  and  not 
properly  secured  against  the  effects  of  atmos- 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


173 


pheric  dampness.  The  ancient  mode  of  using 
paper  upon  canvas  was  much  preferable  to 
what  is  now  practised,  because  they  formed 
together  but  a  thin  body,  which  could  not  ab¬ 
sorb  much  dampness  from  the  atmosphere,  and 
would  dry  rapidly  on  a  fire  being  lighted  in  the 
apartment ;  whereas  plaster  is  often  put  on  a 
brick  partition,  about  a  foot  thick,  which,  on 
any  natural  change  in  the  temperature  of  the 
atmosphere  from  coolness  to  warmth,  will  con¬ 
tinue  to  absorb  moisture  until  its  whole  mass 
rises  to  the  same  temperature  as  the  atmosphere 
itself.  In  Scotland,  we  often  find  this  humidity 
condensing  upon  the  painted  walls  of  our  lobbies, 
staircases,  corridors,  and  passages,  until  it  ac¬ 
cumulates  upon  the  surface  to  such  an  extent  as 
to  run  down  in  streams  upon  the  floors  and 
steps.  Now,  in  the  case  of  the  walls  of  such 
apartments  being  papered,  all  this  accumulation 
of  moisture  is  absorbed,  and  must  afterwards  be 
given  out,  combined  with  the  effluvia  from  the 
decayed  animal  and  vegetable  substances  neces¬ 
sarily  employed  in  this  mode  of  decoration. 
Painting  is,  therefore,  decidedly  preferable  to 
papering  in  lobbies,  staircases,  corridors,  and 
passages,  both  in  point  of  wholesomeness  and 
15* 


174 


THE  LAWS  OF 


durability,  the  more  especially  as  they  cannot 
be  kept  at  so  equal  a  temperature  as  the  apart¬ 
ments  to  which  they  lead,  and  to  which  they  are 
the  reservoirs  of  air  in  bad  weather  and  during 
the  night,  whilst  all  other  inlets  are  closed. 
Neither  is  paper  a  good  decoration  for  the  walls 
of  a  dining-room,  because  it  absorbs  the  steams 
from  the  table,  which  must  be  again  given  out 
along  with  the  effluvia  of  the  substances  already 
described.  The  quantity  given  out,  as  the  ab¬ 
sorbed  moisture  evaporates  from  a  papered  wall, 
may  be  so  small  as  not  to  make  any  perceptible 
impression  upon  the  sense  of  smell ;  but  that 
it  must,  to  some  extent,  contaminate  the  atmos¬ 
phere  of  the  apartment,  while  it  continues  to  be 
given  out,  cannot  be  denied.  The  prepossession 
in  favor  of  paper-hanging  has  doubtless  arisen 
from  its  producing  an  apparently  clothed  and 
warm  effect  to  the  eye,  as  also  from  the  gayety 
and  cheerfulness  that  it  is  capable  of  imparting 
at  a  smaller  cost  than  any  other  mode  of  decora¬ 
tion.  And  certainly  for  bed-rooms,  where  the 
disadvantages  to  which  I  have  alluded  are  not 
so  likely  to  be  felt,  these  qualities  give  it  a 
preference.  Satin-grounds,  however,  should  al¬ 
ways  be  preferred  to  body-grounds  for  bed-room 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


175 


papers,  as  they  are  not  only  the  most  whole¬ 
some,  hut,  from  their  greater  durability,  are 
ultimately  the  cheapest. 

In  respect  to  the  walls  of  drawing-rooms,  there 
are  many  styles  of  decoration  equally  as  suitable 
as  paper-hangings  in  producing  the  effects  of 
gayety,  cheerfulness,  and  grandeur,  and  at  a  cost 
not  exceeding  that  of  the  generality  of  gilded 
and  flocked  paper-hangings  so  employed  ;  while, 
taking  into  consideration  the  much  greater  dur¬ 
ability  of  the  painting,  such  styles  of  decoration 
prove  ultimately  to  be  less  than  half  the  expense 
of  papering.  Such  of  those  styles  of  decoration 
as  I  have  been  for  the  last  twenty  years  in  the 
habit  of  practising,  and  such  as  I  have  more 
recently  invented,  I  shall  endeavor  to  describe. 

Stippled  Flat-Painting  and  Gold. — The 
process  of  stippled  flat-painting  has  already  been 
described,  and  its  great  durability  and  real  com¬ 
fort  commented  on.  Upon  this  kind  of  paint¬ 
ing,  whatever  the  tint  may  be,  the  gilded  pattern 
is  produced  by  the  following  process  : — • 

The  outline  of  the  pattern  is  first  drawn  upon 
paper,  and  closely  pricked  with  a  needle.  This 
paper  is  called  a  pounce,  and  when  the  paint  is 


176 


THE  LAWS  OF 


quite  dry,  it  is  laid  upon  the  wall,  and  rubbed 
over  with  a  bag  of  powdered  charcoal,  which, 
going  through  the  pricked  outline,  leaves  an 
impression  of  it  upon  the  wall.  The  pattern  is 
generally  confined  within  a  few  superficial  square 
feet,  and  of  course  the  process  is  repeated  until 
the  whole  wall  is  covered.  The  decorative 
artists  then  proceed  to  paint  the  pattern  on  the 
wall  with  oil  gold-size,  and  afterwards  to  apply 
the  gold-leaf  by  the  process  already  fully  de¬ 
scribed.  Some  patterns  are  so  simple  that  the 
gold-size  may  be  applied  by  a  stencil ;  that  is, 
cutting  the  pattern  out  of  very  thin  pasteboard, 
or  painted  paper,  and  laying  this  cut-out  paper 
on  the  wall,  and  applying  the  gold-size  through 
it  with  a  largeish  brush.  The  most  simple  pat¬ 
terns  are  composed  of  stars,  rosettes,  or  sprigs, 
and  sometimes  of  a  mixture  of  two  of  those, 
placed  at  intervals  of  from  ten  to  twenty  inches 
apart,  according  to  the  size  of  the  room,  or  taste 
of  the  employer.  The  richer  patterns  are  made 
occasionally  to  embody  some  of  the  devices  of 
the  armorial  bearings  of  the  proprietors  of  the 
mansion,  or  monograms  of  their  initial  letters, 
surrounded  by  rosettes,  and  united  by  festoons 
and  sprigs.  Indeed,  there  is  such  ample  latitude 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


177 


for  variety  of  pattern,  that  the  decorator  need  not 
necessarily,  in  the  course  of  many  years’  prac¬ 
tice,  make  two  drawing-rooms  exactly  the  same 
in  this  respect.  The  stippling  of  the  ground¬ 
work  imparts  great  richness  to  the  gilding,  and 
prevents  the  tinselled  glare  that  is  produced  by 
gilding  on  a  plain  surface. 

Imitation  of  Gold  Embroidery. — This  is 
the  richest  style  of  gilded  decoration  applied  to 
drawing-room  walls,  and  the  following  is  the 
process:  The  walls  are  painted  four  or  five 
coats  in  the  usual  way,  and  allowed  to  harden ; 
they  then  receive  a  coat  of  very  thick  tenacious 
paint,  of  which  bees-wax  and  gum-mastic  are  in¬ 
gredients.  While  this  coat  is  wet,  a  fine  toothed 
ivory  graining-comb  is  drawn  through  it,  first 
diagonally  down  from  right  to  left,  then  from 
left  to  right,  and  lastly  in  a  vertical  direction.  By 
this  process  the  appearance  of  cloth  composed 
of  strong  threads  is  produced  upon  the  wall. 
This  thick  coating  requires  eight  or  ten  days  to 
harden,  even  in  warm  weather.  When  it  is 
quite  hard  it  receives  a  coat  Qf  flat  paint,  of  any 
tint  that  may  be  chosen,  which  prevents  the  im¬ 
pression  made  by  the  comb  from  being  very 


178 


THE  LAWS  OF 


distinct  at  a  little  distance.  The  outline  of  the 
pattern  is  produced  above  this  bj  a  pounce,  and 
is  gold-sized  and  gilded  in  the  usual  way.  It 
will  now  be  found  that  the  effect  of  the  light 
reflected  from  the  points  of  the  granules-  that  are 
gilded  gives  the  pattern  the  appearance  of  being 
wrought  in  thread  of  gold* 

Decorative  Bordering. — This  style  is  equally 
suitable  to  either  dining-rooms  or  drawing-rooms, 
and  admits  of  great  variety.  It  consists  of  painted 
and  gilded  borders  being  made  to  surround  the 
apartment  at  top  and  bottom  of  the  wall,  and 
occasionally,  where  the  room  is  uniform  in  its 
divisions,  they  are  carried  round  the  angles  also ; 
by  which  latter  mode  of  application  each  side 
and  end  of  the  room  is  thrown  into  a  panel.  It 
is  generally  found  requisite  to  show  an  inch  or 
two  of  the  ground  color  of  the  wall,  between  the 
border  and  the  cornice,  in  order  to  prevent  any 
diminution  in  the  apparent  height  of  the  apart - 

*  This  style  of  decoration  has  been  executed  with  great 
effect  upon  a  pure  white  ground,  in  one  of  the  largest,  and 
finest  drawing-rooms  in  the  neighborhood  of  Edinburgh.  The 
pattern  was  composed  of  festoons  of  laurel,  with  a  monogram 
of  the  family  name. 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


179 


ment.  These  borders  are  sometimes  bounded  by 
a  straight  line,  and  at  others  broken  into  the 
wall,  and  end  upon  it  in  light  tendrils. 

They  may  either  be  composed  entirely  of  gild¬ 
ing,  entirely  of  colors,  or  of  a  combination  of 
the  two.  The  ground-work  of  the  wall  may 
either  be  plain,  or  have  a  pattern.  The  color 
introduced  into  these  borders  is  very  generally 
that  of  the  curtains,  but  the  richest  and  most 
beautiful  effect  is  produced  by  a  judicious  mix¬ 
ture  of  various  colors  and  gilding. 

There  has  lately  been  introduced  a  new  style 
of  bordering,  applicable  principally  to  drawing¬ 
rooms  where  pictures  are  hung,  and  consisting 
in  the  greater  part  of  the  wall  being  finished 
in  stippled  flatted-painting,  of  a  grave  tone  of 
color,  and  the  decoration  confined  to  a  pendant 
ornament,  proceeding  two  or  three  feet  from  the 
cornice,  and  either  finished  simply  in  gilding,  or 
in  a  mixture  of  gilding  with  rich  coloring.* 

*  This  novel  style  of  decoration  was  suggested  to  me  by  an 
employer  of  a  highly  cultivated  mind  and  excellent  taste, 
and  executed  in  his  house  in  Edinburgh.  The  effect  was 
everything  that  could  be  desired,  both  as  regarded  the  pic¬ 
tures  and  general  appearance  of  the  rooms.  The  color  was  a 
warm  hue  of  green. 


180 


THE  LAWS  OF 


The  Patent  Imitation  of  Damask  is  another 
style  of  painting  suitable  for  any  apartment  in  a 
dwelling-house,  and  is  remarkable  for  its  great 
durability  and  cleanliness,  every  successive  wash¬ 
ing  improving  its  effect.  For  this  style  of  paint¬ 
ing  I  obtained  a  patent  in  1826,  and  the  apart¬ 
ments,  upon  the  walls  of  which  it  was  first 
applied,  are  still  as  perfect  as  when  newly  'fin¬ 
ished.  It  resembles  flocked  paper ;  but  it  is  as 
superior  to  it  in  appearance,  as  it  is  in  cleanliness 
and  durability.  On  account  of  these  latter 
qualities,  it  is  the  best  of  all  modes  of  decoration 
for  the  walls  of  a  dining-room.  I  have  already 
observed  that  paper  is  not  a  good  covering  for 
the  walls  of  a  dining-room,  in  consequence  of  its 
liability  to  absorb ‘the  moisture  from  the  breath 
of  the  company  and  the  steam  of  the  dishes,  which 
it  is  well  known  must  again  be  given  out  as  the 
atmosphere  of  the  room  begins  to  cool,  along 
with  a  certain  portion  of  the  effluvia  from  the 
animal  and  vegetable  substances  already  de¬ 
scribed.  Now,  on  a  painted  wall  this  moisture 
condenses  on  the  surface,  and  a  current  of  fresh 
air  will  rapidly  dry  it  off,  while  occasional  wash¬ 
ing  will  remove  any  residuum  that  may  accumu¬ 
late  from  the  evaporation  of  this  moisture.  In 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


181 


the  patent  imitation  of  damask,  these  advantages 
are  combined  with  a  clothed  and  comfortable 
appearance  to  the  eye. 

There  are  two  processes  by  which  the  patent . 
imitation  of  damask  is  produced  upon  plastered 
walls.  The  first  is  by  thoroughly  painting  the 
plaster  in  four  or  five  coats,  then  outlining  a 
pattern  upon  it  in  black-lead,  and  coating  it  over 
with  a  thick  substance  composed  of  oil,  mastic 
varnish,  bees- wax,  sugar-of-lead,  umber,  or  other 
coloring  pigments,  and  making  an  impression  on 
this  with  an  iron  comb  while  it  is  wet.  The  im¬ 
pression  of  the  comb  is  then  obliterated  upon  the 
pattern  by  the  thick  substance  being  smoothed 
upon  it  with  a  camel-hair  pencil ;  the  whole,  when 
quite  dry,  is  then  painted  over  with  any  color, 
and  varnished  with  copal. 

The  other  method  is  that  now  almost  uniformly 
adopted.  The  plaster  is,  as  in  the  first  process, 
thoroughly  painted,  and  the  outline  of  the  pattern 
impressed  upon  it  by  means  of  a  pounce;  this 
outline  is  filled  in  with  the  thick  tenacious  sub* 
stance  already  mentioned,  which,  however,  may 
now  be  made  opaque  by  the  introduction  of 
white  lead.  Fine  pit  or  sea  sand  is  prepared  by 
drying  and  sifting,  and  while  the  tenacious  sub- 
16 


182 


THE  LAWS  OF 


stance  with  which  the  pattern  has  been  painted 
remains  wet,  the  sand  is  thrown  against  the  wail 
with  some  force  until  the  pattern  be  all  covered 
with  it ;  when  this  is  quite  dry,  which  will  be  in 
the  course  of  a  few  days,  all  the  loose  sand  is 
carefully  brushed  off,  leaving  only  what  adheres 
firmly  to  the  tenacious  substance*  of  which  the 
pattern  is  formed.  The  whole  is  now  carefully 
painted  over  with  a  coat  of  flatted  paint  of  the 
same  color  as  the  ground- work.  The  process  by 
which  these  two  kinds  of  imitation  damask  are 
produced,  although  different,  are  the  same  in 
principle, — that  is,  the  effect  of*  damask  is  given 
by  means  of  the  combination  of  a  rough  and  a 
smooth  surface  only,  without  any  variety  of  tint 
or  shade. 

Imitation  Moeocco  is  another  excellent  style 
of  painting  very  suitable  for  either  libraries  or 
dining-rooms.  It  is,  like  the  varnished  imitation 
of  damask,  produced  by  laying  upon  a  thoroughly 
painted  wall  a  coat  of  thick  tenacious  paint,  and 
giving  it  the  peculiar  effect  of  the  surface  of 
morocco,  by  means  of  a  toothed  instrument  made 
either  of  ivory  or  steel,  and  finishing  it  with 
another  coat  of  paint,  and  one  of  varnish. 


HARMONIOUS  COLORING. 


183 


There  are  many  other  styles  and  processes  by 
T^hich  the  walls  of  dwelling-houses  and  public 
buildings  may  be  decorated  by  the  painter ;  but 
what  I  have  here  given  are  the  most  practically 
useful,  and,  while  they  are  not  more  costly  than 
paper-hangings  of  equal  appearance,  have  the 
advantages  of^reater  cleanliness  and  durability 


NOTES 


Note  A.  p.  52. 

$ 

A  correspondent  of  “  The  Fine  Arts  Journal ,”  (No.  X.  p. 
171,)  referring  to  an  article  that  appeared  in  No.  V.  of  the 
same  journal,  has  treated  the  subject  of  the  power  of  music,  in 
conveying  a  meaning,  independently  of  its  being  accompanied 
by  words,  in  so  masterly  a  manner,  that  1  shall  give  his  letter 
entire : — 

“  I  much  regret  the  paper  on  the  Descriptive  Power  of  Music, 
in  your  5th  number,  has  not  met  with  an  answer  from  more 
competent  hands  than  mine ;  which  I  was  in  hopes  would  have 
been  the  case,  and  had  forgotten  the  subject  until  in  your  last 
appeared  an  assumption  that  the  argument  was  proved,  than 
which  there  never  was  a  greater  error.  In  that  paper  it  is 
stated,  that  ‘  if  an  individual  were  asked  what  he  meant  by  so 
descriptive,  unless  the  said  piece  of  music  was  of  itself  described 
—for  instance,  as  the  Pastoral  Symphony,  or  the  many  over¬ 
tures  to  operas,  which  of  course  are  intended  to  have  reference 
to  the  opera  itself — he  would  answer  by  commencing  de  novo, 
the  same  string  of  epithets ;  being  totally  unable  to  say  what 
was  the  music  described,  or  what  it  was  even  characteristic  of. 
This  is  not  put  forward  as  a  mere  statement,  but  as  a  fact.’ 

“I  doubt  the  fact ;  but  if  true,  it  cannot  affect  the  question: 
because  we  do  not  go  to  hear  music  for  the  sake  of  adapting 
words  to  all  we  hear,  and  are  not  therefore  prepared  to  class 
and  express  our  ideas  on  the  moment,  or  even  on  once  hearing. 
When  the  term  so  descriptive,  is  used,  the  meaning  is,  that  words 
could  with  facility  be  adapted  to  the  music  from  its  capacity  to 
16* 


186 


NOTES. 


continue  any  course  of  ideas  to  which  it  may  give  rise  in  the 
mind.  If  it  is  required  of  music  to  con yey  facts  and  substances , 
more  is  demanded  than  even  language  can  offer,  without  that 
most  convenient  word,  conventionalism. 

“A  slow  or  quick  time  has  a  different  effect  on  the  nervous 
system  where  no  conventionalism  exist,  and  no  difference  of 
habit  could  alter  the  effect.  It  might  just  as  well  be  said,  that 
being  intoxicated  by  a  strong  liquor  was  only  a  conventionalism, 
and  that  if  we  had  accustomed  ourselves  to  get  drunk  on  water 
it  would  have  become  an  highly  intoxicating  beverage,  and  that 
we  might  have  drank  whiskey-toddy  by  the  gallon  without  its 
having  any  effect  on  the  nervous  system. 

“  The  color  for  mourning  does  not  affect  the  mind  of  the 
observer  who  feels  not  sorrow  for  the  person  in  black :  it  is 
not  intended,  and  does  not  influence  the  feelings,  without 
knowledge  of  the  parties. 

“  The  person  in  black  frequently  only  professes  grief  or 
respect  for  those  gone,  nor  are  the  colors  used  in  different 
countries  by  religious  sects  intendedrtto  excite  your  feelings, 
otherwise  than  by  indicating  the  rank  the  wearer  holds  in 
society,  and  that  he  claims  personally  a  due  share  of  respect. 
The  particular  color  in  none  of  these  cases  is  supposed  to  arise 
from  or  evidence  the  idea ;  it  is  only  a  livery  of  rank  or  condi¬ 
tion.  Admitting  the  laws  regulating  the  harmony  of  color  and 
sound  are  the  same,  C.  J.  fails  in  any  way  to  connect  them  with 
his  subject.  • 

“  ‘A  sound  per  se,  or  succession  of  sounds,  conveys  no  idea 
but  a  noise; — agreeable  or  otherwise ,  as  the  case  may  be .’  Now, 
without  noticing  these  last  words,  which  admit  the  whole  ques¬ 
tion,  we  will  force  it  out  of  the  first  part — a  noise.  You  are 
awoke  in  the  night  by  a  noise — nothing  follows.  Is  not  the 
suspense  productive  of  terror  ?  The  noise  is  repeated.  Let  it 
be  what  it  will,  it  conveys  to  your  mind  something :  it  is  de¬ 
scriptive  of  some  action  or  accident. 

“A  single  blast  from  a  trumpet  is  a  noise;  true,  and  several 
blasts  may  be  a  greater  noise.  I  have  heard  such  where  they 
should  not  have  been  ;  but  a  succession  of  sounds  may  be  a  pro- 


NOTES. 


187 


duction  of  an  effect.  Let  C.  J.  produce  the  following  to  any 
uninitiated  person,  and  ask  if  these  chords  have  no  effect  on 
the  mind  of  his  listeners,  even  on  the  pianoforte.  He  need  not 
try  it  on  the  instruments  for  which  he  knows  it  is  written  ;  and 
if  even  separately  from  its  story,  from  all  that  may  be  supposed 
to  convey  any  intention,  let  him  say  whether  it  does  not  affect 
the  minds  of  his  hearers,  with  sensations  producing  ideas.  If 
so,  it  is  descriptive ;  no  matter,  though  the  impression  be  dif¬ 
ferent  in  each  hearer,  it  is  still  descriptive.*  Here  is  but  a 
portion  of  a  sentence,  a  word,  a  syllable,  doing  all  that  is 
deemed  possible.  The  error  is  in  calling  on  the  mind  of  any 
one  hearing  a  symphony  to  put  a  story  or  description  to  what 
has  been  heard  without  reflection  or  re-hearing..  We  do  not  go 
to  hear  music  for  the  purpose  of  adapting  words,  and  hence  are 
not  able  to  do  so  on  their  being  demanded  from  us ;  nor  am  I 
aware  that  any  one  person  has  ever  indulged  the  idea  in  public. 
It  is  in  some  measure  a  novelty  that  would,  I  am  sure,  be  pro¬ 
ductive  of  much  gratification ;  so  different  is  my  opinion  to  that 
of  your  correspondent  To  put  a  story  or  description  to  what 
the  mind  has  heard  for  the  first  time  would  be  very  difficult ; 
though  I  have  heard  a  leader  with  a  lively  imagination  impro¬ 
vise,  and  continue  a  single  story  throughout  a  whole  symphony 
of  Haydn.  On  first  hearing  a  portion  of  Rossini’s  Stabat  Mater , 
without  a  knowledge  of  the  meaning  of  the  words  or  the  inten¬ 
tion,  it  forcibly  impressed  me  as  such  as  angels  might  chant 
in  praise  of  the  Deity,  and  that  music  of  such  pretension  had 
never  been  presented  to  me  in  all  I  had  before  heard ;  the  most 
elevated  still  falling  short  of  what  the  mind  demanded.  Here 
was  the  abstract  icl^a,  true  evidence  of  character  only.  On 
being  again  presented  to  the  mind,  if  amplification  ensued,  that 
would  be  evidence  of  its  being  descriptive ;  no  matter  if,  as 
before  stated,  different  individuals  thought  differently  on  the 
subject — a  ship  is  to  you  or  to  me  a  ship;  to  others  the  same 

*  We  are  unable  to  insert  the  music,  but  it  will  be  sufficient  for 
our  musical  readers  that  the  passage  is  from  the  part  of  the  Com- 
mendatore  in  Don  Giovanni ,  to  the  works  “  Don  Giovanni ,  a 
cenar  teco  m'invitasti  et  son  venuto .” 


188 


NOTES. 


would  be  a  barque,  a  brig,  a  schooner ;  this  being  a  defect  in 
our  knowledge,  not  in  the  ship  itself :  and  all  who  make  nothing 
but  a  noise  out  of  the  above  chords,  may  justly  doubt  their 
own  capacity  to  judge  of  more  complicated  or  more  lengthened 
portions  of  musical  productions. 

“In  this  argument  we  have  nothing  to  do  with  pieces  that 
have  had  words  adapted. 

“  They  are  by  its  nature  totally  inadmissible:  if  wishy-washy 
without  them,  it  can  only  prove  an  inefficient  composer  or 
author  in  each  particular  case;  but  has  no  reference  to  the 
question  at  issue. 

“But  the  pieces  without  number  of  the  three  composers 
cited,  that  have  no  ideas  at  present  attached  to  them  by 
authority  that  will  come  within  the  generally  accepted  term, 

‘  so  descriptive,’  will  enable  any  of  your  readers  to  test  this 
question  ;  and,  in  the  full  hope  that  some  one  of  them  will  do 
so,  and  favor  you  with  merely  an  abstract,  I  leave  the  question 
thus  to  be  decided  by  others,  confident  of  the  result. 

“  If  we  consider  this  more  philosophically;  if  we  inquire  and 
define  what  a  sensation  is,  and  how  the  mind  is  acted  upon  by 
external  objects  to  produce  sensations  of  pain  or  pleasure,  we 
shall  be  coming  more  to  the  marrow  of  the  question,  and  this 
shall  be  done,  if  the  position  cannot  be  demonstrated  without 
it,  on  a  future  occasion,  if  you  will  favor  me  with  the  space. — I 
am  yours,  &c.  G.” 

Note  B,  p.  132. 

In  one  of  the  most  wealthy  and  populous  cities  in  Scotland, 
the  journeymen,  in  memorializing  their  masters,  commence  as 
follows : — 

“Painters’  Hall, - 8th  May. 

“We  beg  leave,  most  respectfully,  to  intimate,  that  at  a 
general  meeting  of  the  journeymen  painters,  held  within  the 
society’s  hall,  on  Monday  evening  the  6th  instant,  it  was  unani¬ 
mously  resolved — ‘  That  we  respectfully  bring  under  your  notice 
a  few  of  the  grievances  at  present  existing  in  the  trade.’  .  .  . 


NOTES. 


189 


Amongst  the  numerous  evils  of  which  we  have  to  complain,  we 
beg  leave  to  submit  the  following: — 

“  First,  it  is  a  notorious  fact  that  a  number  of  employers  in 
this  city  have,  for  a  long  period,  been  in  the  practice  of  taking 
into  their  employment  an  unlimited  number  of  half-bred  and 
run-away  apprentices,  young  men  who  are  quite  incompetent  to 
execute  any  part  of  our  work  in  a  satisfactory  manner.  Such  a 
system  is  prone  to  innumerable  evils ;  inasmuch  that  it  has 
been  the  cause  of  a  great  portion  of  the  public  sending  to  a  con¬ 
siderable  distance  (Edinburgh,  &c.)  for  painters  to  execute 
their  work.” 

“The  second  evil  is  of  a  very  serious  nature,  not  only  to  us 
but  to  the  public  generally ;  that  is,  the  too  frequent  and  abun¬ 
dant  use  of  size  to  all  kinds  of  painting  work,  which  most  un¬ 
justly  deprives  us  of  labor,  our  only  inheritance,  at  the  same 
time  dealing  unjustly  to  the  public,  your  only  support.  There 
are  so  many.glaring  proofs  before  us  of  this  evil,  that  were  it 
made  known  to  the  public,  the  consequences  would  be  most 
serious  to  those  parties  adopting  such  nefarious  practices — a 
system  against  which  no  honest  employer  can  compete,  and 
which  will  be  put  down  at  all  hazards.” 

This  memorial  not  being  satisfactorily  received  by  the  mas¬ 
ter  painters,  a  bill,  upwards  of  two  feet  long,  and  about  a  foot 
and  a  half  broad,  was  posted  throughout  the  city  in  question 
stating  that 

“The  journeymen  painters  of  - have  for  a  long  time 

viewed  with  astonishment  and  indignation  the  nefarious  system 

which  several  of  the  master  painters  of - have  adopted  in 

the  execution  of  painting — a  system  of  fraud  unparalleled  in  the 
history  of  any  trade.  We  have  hitherto  allowed  the  practice  to 
continue,  in  the  hope  that  the  public  would  find  out  the  dis¬ 
graceful  manner  in  which  their  work  has  been  executed ;  but 
the  evil,  instead  of  being  detected,  is  progressing  to  an  enor¬ 
mous  extent.  So  indiscriminate  is  the  application,  that  from 
the  drawing-room  to  the  kitchen,  the  pernicious  article  of  size 
is  substituted  for  oil  paint. 

“To  give  some  idea  to  non-professionals  of  the  manner  in 


190 


NOTES. 


which  this  system  operates,  it  will  be  necessary  to  enter  into 
detail — 

“  1st,  Estimates  wherein  work  is  to  receive  four  coats  is  thus 
schemed :  A  coat  of  strong  size  is  first  applied  to  the  whole ; 
it  then  gets  the  first  coat  of  paint ;  another  coat  of  size  follows. 
The  second  and  third  coat  of  paint  is  then  put  on,  which  finishes 
it.  Here,  it  is  seen,  a  full  coat  of  paint  is  saved  on  the  walls 
and  other  parts  which  come  more  immediately  under  inspection ; 
and  when  it  is  taken  into  account  that  cornices  are  never  hit  in, 
backs  of  shutters,  presses,  &c.  receiving  but  two  coats ,  it  will  be 
found  to  be  a  very  profitable  system  to  the  dishonest  employer. 

“2d.  Estimates  for  three-coat  work.  It  receives  a  coat  of 
full-strength  size,  another  coat  of  reduced  size,  mixed  with 
whiting ;  it  then  receives  its  first  coat  of  paint ;  another  coat  of 
reduced  size,  called  clear  cole,  prepares  it  for  varnish ;  but  if  it 
be  finished  in  flat,  the  clear  cole  is  not  necessary.  Here,  again, 
the  system  is  carried  out  on  work  that  the  three  coats,  if  all  put 
on,  would  not  be  sufficient  to  make  a  proper  and  durable  job. 
But  it  is  on  work  intended  for  imitations  that  the  wholesale 
system  op  plunder  Is  carried  out.  For  example,  take  a 
dining-room,  which  should  get  three  coats  for  oak  (walls,  ceil¬ 
ing,  and  wood-work)  ;  it  receives  a  coat  of  full-strength  size 
another  coat  of  reduced  size,  mixed  with  whiting ;  it  then  gets 
a  coat  of  round  color,  which  furnishes  it  for  the  grainer.  Now, 
we  ask,  if  parties  who  adopt  this  wholesale  system  of  plunder 
are  worthy  of  public  patronage  ? 

“We  would  caution  the  public  to  be  careful  of  whom  they 
employ,  for  the  system  has  arrived  at  such  a  pitch  that  it 
would  require  constant  watching  to  prevent  the  use  of  size 

and  ADULTERATED  LEAD.” 

In  respect  to  the  workmen  employed,  the  bill  gave  a  list  of 
ten  establishments,  employing  in  all  158  hands,  71  of  whom  were 
journeymen,  and  87  were  apprentices. 

Whether  these  accusations  were  true,  to  the  extent  here 
assumed,  or  whether  they  have  been  as  yet  contradicted  by 
any  of  the  parties  against  whom  they  were  so  publicly  brought 
forward,  I  do  not  know ;  but  that  a  system  of  the  kind  does 


NOTES. 


191 


prevail  in  other  cities,  as  well  as  that  in  which  this  meeting 
took  place,  there  can  be  no  doubt,  and  it  is  but  just  to  the 
more  respectable  portion  of  the  profession  that  every  oppor¬ 
tunity  should  be  taken  to  make  the  public  acquainted  with  the 
fact. 


Note  C,  p.  142. 

Such  was  the  opinion  of  the  celebrated  Author  of  Waverley. 

Mr.  Lockhart,  in  his  life  of  that  great  man,  observes,  “  In 
the  painting  of  the  interior  too.  Sir  Walter,  personally  directed 
everything.  He  abominated  the  common-place  daubing  of 
walls,  panels,  dooTs,  and  window-boards,  with  coats  of  white, 
blue,  or  gray,  and  thought  that  sparklings  and  edgings  of 
gilding  only  made  their  baldness  and  poverty  more  noticeable. 
He  desired  to  have  about  him,  wherever  he  could  manage  it, 
rich,  though  not  gaudy  hangings,  or  substantial  old-fashioned 
wainscot  work,  with  no  ornament  but  that  of  carving,  and 
where  the  wood  was  to  be  painted  at  all,  it  was  done  in  strict 
imitation  of  oak  or  cedar.  Except  in  the  drawing-room,  which 
he  abandoned  to  Lady  Scott’s  taste,  all  the  roofs  were  in 
appearance  of  antique  carved  oak,  relieved  by  coats  of  arms 
duly  blazoned  at  the  intersections  of  the  beams,  and  resting  on 
cornices,  to  the  eye  of  the  same  material,  but  really  composed 
of  casts  of  plaster  of  Paris.” — ( Life  of  Sir  Walter  Scott,  vol.  v. 
p.  323.) 

Sir  Walter  certainly  did,  as  Mr.  Lockhart  observes,  direct 
every  thing  personally,  connected  with  the  building  and  decora¬ 
tion  of  his  mansion,  and  it  remains  to  this  day  not  the  least 
interesting  and  remarkable  creation  of  his  wonderful  mind. 

It  is  now  upwards  of  twenty-seven  years  since  I  had  the 
honor  of  receiving  the  orders  of  Sir  Walter  regarding  the 
decoration  of  the  first  part  of  Abbotsford  House  that  was  built. 
These  orders,  which  were  given  on  the  eve  of  his  leaving  for 
London  to  receive  his  baronetcy,  were  of  too  important  a 
nature,  and  given  in  too  remarkable  a  manner,  not  to  leave  an 
indelible  impression  on  the  mind  of  one  so  ready  to  devote  his 
best  energies  to  their  execution.  Every  thing  connected  with 


192 


NOTES. 


the  memory  of  that  great  man  being  full  of  interest,  I  trust  I 
shall  be  excused,  for  here  giving  a  few  reminiscences,  of  what 
passed  on  that  occasion,  and  during  the  progress  of  the  decora¬ 
tions  at  Abbotsford. 

The  first  stipulation  made  by  Sir  Walter  was,  that,  as  he 
would  be  absent  during  the  whole  progress  of  the  work,  which 
he  required  should  be  finished  by  his  return  to  Scotland,  I 
should  remain  with  the  workmen  upon  the  spot,  and  super¬ 
intend  it  personally,  in  order  that  the  directions  he  had  given 
me  (which  were  all  verbal),  should  be  strictly  followed.  He 
ordered  me  to  paint  the  dining-room  ceiling,  cornice,  niches, 
&c.  in  imitation  of  oak  to  match  the  doors,  window-shutters, 
and  wainscoting,  which  were  made  of  that  wood  ;  to  emblazon 
some  small  shields,  in  the  bosses  of  the  ceiling,  with  their 
heraldic  metals  and  colors,  and  to  fix  four  pictures  on  certain 
parts  of  the  wall,  namely,  one  of  a  lady  (called  the  flower  of 
Yarrow),  over  the  chimney-piece,  another,  a  portrait  of  General 
Fairfax,  on  the  centre  of  the  opposite  side  of  the  room,  and  two 
small  ones  over  the  doors,  one  of  which,  if  I  recollect  rightly, 
was  a  view  of  the  ruins  of  Melrose  Abbey  by  moonlight. 
These,  after  being  fixed  to  the  wall  by  a  narrow  moulding  of 
oak,  were  to  be  surrounded  with  an  imitation  of  a  carved  frame 
of  the  same  material,  painted  in  light  and  shade  upon  the  fiat 
plaster.  To  cover  the  remainder  of  the  wall  he  gave  me  an 
Indian  paper  of  a  crimson  color,  with  a  small  gilded  pattern 
upon  it.  This  paper  he  said  he  did  not  altogether  approve  of 
for  a  dining-room,  but  as  he  had  got  it  in  a  present  expressly 
for  that  purpose,  and  as  he  believed  it  to  be  rare,  he  would 
have  it  put  upon  the  room,  rather  than  hurt  the  feelings  of  the 
donor.  I  -observed  to  Sir  Walter,  that  there  would  scarcely  be 
enough  to  cover  the  whole  remainder  of  the  wall  after  the 
pictures  were  fixed  up,  to  which  he  replied,  that  in  that  case  I 
might  paint  the  recess  for  the  sideboard  in  imitation  of  oak. 
The  small  armory  adjoining,  he  directed  to  be  painted  altogether 
in  imitation  of  oak,  as  also  the  wood-work  of  his  library  and 
staircase ;  the  walls  of  the  former  being  painted  a  plain  color 
of  a  quiet  tone,  and  those  of  the  latter  and  passages,  in  imita- 


NOTES. 


193 


tion  of  stone-work.  The  decoration  of  the  bed-rooms,  and 
painting  of  the  servants’  apartments  were  left  to  be  ordered  by 
Lady  Scott. 

Most  of  my  readers  will  be  aware  that  the  mansion-house  of 
Abbotsford  was  built  in  two  distinct  portions — a  period  of  four 
years  elapsing  between  the  completion  of  the  first  and  that  of 
the  second.  The  first  part  consisted  of  the  present  dining¬ 
room,  the  present  breakfast  parlor,  which  was  then  Sir  Walter’s 
library  and  study,  and  in  which  many  of  the  celebrated  novels 
were  written, — the  small  armory  entering  from  the  dining¬ 
room,  with  the  bed-rooms  and  attics  above  these  apartments. 
This  was  the  portion  of  the  mansion  to  which  the  orders  I  have 
mentioned  related,  and  the  accommodation  of  which  were  eked 
out  by  what  remained  of  the  original  small  house  that  stood 
upon  the  property.  These  orders  I  received  early  in  March 
1820,  and  with  eight  assistants  commenced  their  execution  on 
the  20th  of  that  month,  and  had  the  whole  finished  by  the  end 
of  April,  as  agreed. 

The  recess  for  the  sideboard,  at  the  end  of  the  dining-room, 
had  at  first  been  finished  in  imitation  of  oak,  but  finding  that 
there  was  a  sufficient  quantity  of  paper  to  cover  this  as  well  as 
the  other  parts  of  the  wall,  I  had  it  put  on  above  the  painting, 
in  the  belief  that  Sir  Walter  had  agreed  to  the  painting  of  it 
merely  as  an  alternative,  Arising  from  the  supposed  want  of 
paper.  In  giving  his  orders  regarding  the  painting  of  the 
staircase  and  lobby  he  made  no  allusion  to  the  steps  of  the  one, 
or  floor  of  the  other ;  and  as  there  were  no  floorcloth  or  stair 
carpeting  ordered  I  had  them  painted  in  imitation  of  marble, 
the  floor  of  the  lobby  being  in  the  figure  of  an  ornamental 
pavement. 

Sir  Walter  returned  to  Scotland  about  the  end  of  April,  and 
either  before  going  to  Edinburgh,  or  soon  thereafter,  visited 
Abbotsford.  He  arrived  in  the  evening,  and  had  no  sooner  put 
his  foot  upon  the  painted  pavement  of  the  lobby  than  he  ob¬ 
served,  “I  surely  did  not  order  this  to  be  done.”  I  then 
explained  to  him  that  as  no  orders  had  been  given  for  any 
other  covering  to  the  bare  stones,  I  had  taken  the  liberty  of 

17 


194 


NOTES. 


painting  them ;  he  replied  that  he  did  not  so  much  object  to 
the  painting,  as  to  the  making  of  imitation  joints  crossing  the 
real  ones,  and  good-naturedly  added,  that  he  believed  the  stones 
themselves  would  rise  up  in  evidence  against  the  impropriety  of 
such  a  proceeding.  And  so  it  literally  turned  out ;  for  in  dess 
than  two  years  the  true  joints  cf  the  pavement,  notwithstanding 
all  my  labor  to  conceal  them  by  puttying  and  polishing,  began 
to  show  themselves,  intersecting  most  awkwardly  those  false 
joints  by  which  I  had  endeavored  to  imitate  an  ornamental 
arrangement  of  marble  slabs.  On  entering  the  dining-room  he 
had  no  sooner  expressed  his  satisfaction  with  the  general  effect, 
than  the  papered  recess  in  which  the  sideboard  stood  attracted 
his  attention  ;  and  he  asked  if  it  had  not  been  agreed  that  it 
should  be  painted  in  imitation  of  oak.  When  I  explained  how 
it  came  to  be  papered,  he  said  it  was  all  right,  but  that  he 
heartily  wished  the  paper  had  fallen  short  as  I  had  at  first 
anticipated,  for  having  seen  in  some  ancient  houses  in  England 
these  recesses  fitted  up  in  real  oak,  he  was  convinced  it  was 
the  proper  style.  I  did  not  mention  to  Sir  Walter  at  this  time 
that  the  recess  had  been  painted  in  imitation  of  oak  before  the 
paper  was  put  upon  it,  in  case  the  taking  of  it  off  might  destroy 
the  painting,  and  put  the  room  for  some  time  in  an  unfit  state 
to  receive  company,  which  would  not  then  have  suited  Sir 
Walter’s  arrangements.  In  the  morning,  however,  I  examined 
the  state  of  the  painting,  and  finding  it  quite  good  underneath 
the  paper,  had  two  of  my  most  expert  workmen  employed  in 
removing  that  covering  from  its  surface  without  Sir  Walter’s 
knowledge,  so  that  when  he  came  down  to  breakfast  the  recess 
was  completely  finished  in  imitation  of  oak  frame-work  instead 
of  being  covered  with  crimson  paper,  as  he  had  seen  it  the  night 
before.  In  casting  his  eyes  round  the  room,  he  immediately 
observed,  “I  must  surely  have  dreamt  that  that. recess  was 
papered  like  the  rest  of  the  wall,  although  the  recollection 
of  having  seen  it  so  is  too  vivid,  and  too  much  mixed  up  with 
other  facts  for  me  to  believe  it  a  dream — it  is  like  enchantment. 
— How  has  it  been  changed  in  so  short  a  time?”  The  matter 
was  then  explained,  and  he  was  highly  pleased.  ^ 


NOTES. 


195 


The  plans  for  the  secondhand  greater  portion  of  the  mansion 
were,  as  the  former  plans  had  been,  supplied  by  Mr.  Blore  the 
architect,  of  London,  from  Sir  Walter’s  own  suggestions,  given 
verbally  while  there  in  1820.  These  plans  comprised  the  great 
entrance-hall,  the  library,  the  drawing-room,  the  study,  and  the 
small  oratory,  with  additional  bed-rooms  above,  and  accommo¬ 
dation  for  servants  below  these  apartments ;  and  the  execution 
of  the  work  was  commenced  early  in  1821. 

The  great  interest  that  Sir  Walter  took  in  the  building  and 
decorating  of  this  part  of  his  mansion,  and  his  knowledge  of 
the  subject,  are  strongly  evinced  in  his  letters  to  his  friend  Mr. 
Daniel  Terry,  the  actor,  who,  being  resident  in  London  at  the 
time,  seems  to  have  rendered  him  considerable  assistance.  Mr. 
T.  seems  also  to  have  engaged  Mr.  Atkinson,  another  London 
architect,  to  carry  out  Sir  Walter’s  ideas  in  respect'  to  the 
details  of  the  plaster  work,  wood  finishing,  &c.  of  the  interior. 

In  a  letter  to  Mr,  T.,  dated  Abbotsford,  November  10th,  1822, 
he  says — “I  got  all  the  plans  safe,  and  they  are  delightful. 
The  library  ceiling  will  be  superb,  and  we  have  plenty  of  orna¬ 
ments  for  it  without  repeating  one  of  those  in  the  eating- room 

.  .  .  I  have  had  three  grand  hawls  since  I  last  wrote  to 

you.  The  pulpit,  repentance-stool,  King’s-seat,  and  God  knows 
how  much  of  carved  wainscot,  from  the  Kirk  of  Dunfermline, 
enough  to  coat  the  hall  to  the  height  of  seven  feet, — supposing 
it  boarded  above,  for  hanging  guns,  old  portraits  intermixed 
with  aimor,  &c.  It  will  be  a  superb  entrance  gallery:  this  is 
hawl  the  first.  Ilawl  the  second  is  twenty-four  pieces  of  the 
most  splendid  Chinese  paper,  twelve  feet  high  by  four  wide,  a 
present  from  my  cousin  Hugh  Scott,  enough  to  finish  the  draw¬ 
ing-room  and  two  bed-rooms.  Hawl  third  is  a  quantity  of  what 
is  called  Jamaica  cedar-wood,  enough  for  fitting  up  both  the 
drawing-room  and  the  librafy,  including  the  presses,  shelves, 
&c. :  the  wood  is  finely  pencilled,  and  most  beautiful,  something 
like  the  color  of  gingerbread ;  it  costs  very  little  more  than 
oak,  works  much  easier,  and  is  never  touched  by  vermin  of  any 
kind.  I  sent  Mr.  Atkinson  a  specimen,  but  it  was  from  the 
plain  end  of  Hie  plank  :  the  interior  is  finely  veined  and  varie- 


196 


NOTES. 


gated.  Your  kind  and  unremitting  exertions  in  our  favor  will 
soon  plenish  the  drawing-room.  Thus  we  at  present  stand. 
We  have  a  fine  old  English  cabinet,  with  China  &c., — and  two 
superb  elbow-chairs,  the  gift  of  Constable,  carved  most  magnifi¬ 
cently,  with  groups  of  children,  fruits,  and  flowers,  in  the 
Italian  taste :  they  came  from  Rome,  and  are  much  admired. 
It  seems  to  me  that  the  mirror  you  mention,  being  framed  in 
carved  box,  would  answer  admirably  well  with  the  chairs,  which 
are  of  the  same  material.  The  mirror  should,  I  presume,  be 
placed  over  the  drawing-room  chimney-piece ;  and  opposite  to 
it  I  mean  to  put  an  antique  table  of  mozaic  marbles,  to  support 
Chantrey’s  bust.  A  good  sofa  would  be  desirable,  and  so  would 
the  tapestry  screen,  if  really  fresh  and  beautiful ;  but  as  much 
of  our  furniture  will  be  a  little  antiquated,  one  would  not  run 
too  much  into  that  taste  in  so  small  an  apartment.  For  the 
library  I  have  the  old  oak  chairs  now  in  the  little  armory,  eight 
in  number,  and  might  add  one  or  two  pair  of  the  ebony  chairs 
you  mention.  I  should  think  this  enough,  for  many  seats  in 
such  a  room  must  impede  access  to  the  books  ;  and  I  don’t  mean 
the  library  to  be  on  ordinary  occasions  a  public  room.  Perhaps 
the  tapestry-screen  would  suit  better  here  than  in  the  drawing¬ 
room.  I  have  one  library-table  here,  and  shall  have  another 
made  for  atlases  and  prints.  For  the  hall  I  have  four  chairs  of 
black-oak.  In  other  matters  we  can  make  it  out  well  enough. 
In  fact  it  is  my  object  rather  to  keep  under  my  new  accommo¬ 
dations  at  first,  both  to  avoid  immediate  outlay,  and  that  I  may 
leave  room  for  pretty  things  that  may  occur  hereafter.  I  would 
to  Heaven  I  could  take  a  cruise  with  you  through  the  brokers, 
which  would  be  the  pleasantest  affair  possible,  only  I  am  afraid 
I  should  make  a  losing  voyage  of  it.  Mr.  Atkinson  has  missed 
a  little  my  idea  of  the  oratory,  fitting  it  up  entirely  as  a  book¬ 
case,  whereas,  I  should  like  to  have  had  recesses  for  curiosities, 
for  the  Bruce’s  skull,  for  a  Crucifix,  &c.  &c. — in  short,  a  little 
cabinet,  instead  of  a  book-closet.  Four  sides  of  books  would 
be  perfectly  sufficient ;  the  other  four,  so  far  as  not  occupied  by 
door  or  window,  should  be  arranged  tastefully  for  antiquities, 
&c.,  like  the  inside  of  an  antique  cabinet — with  drawers,  and 


NOTES. 


197 


shottles,  and  funny  little  arches.  The  oak  screen  dropped  as 
from  the  clouds ;  it  is  most  acceptable ;  I  might  have  guessed 
there  was  only  one  kind  friend  so  ready  to  supply  hay  to  my 
hobby-horse.  You  have  my  views  in  these  matters  and  your 
own  taste  ;  and  I  will  send  the  needful  when  you  apprise  me  of 
the  amount  total.  Where  things  are  not  quite  satisfactory,  it 
is  better  to  wait  a  while  on  every  account,  for  the  amusement 
is  over  when  one  has  room  for  nothing  more.” 

In  regard  to  the  carved  oak  from  the  Kirk  at  Dumfermline,  it 
did  not  turn  out  so  useful  as  Sir  Walter  thought  it  would.  The 
pulpit  was,  if  I  recollect  rightly,  circular,  and  some  other  diffi¬ 
culties  arose  during  the  progress  of  the  carpenters’  work,  in  its 
application  to  the  wainscoting  of  the  entrance-hall.  A  further 
supply  was  therefore  required,  and  upon  this  subject  Sir  Walter 
wrote  to  me  from  Abbotsford,  asking  me  if  I  knew  of  anything 
of  the  kind  in  Edinburgh  that  could  be  purchased  at  a  mode¬ 
rate  price.  At  that  time  there  were  no  shops  in  Edinburgh, 
such  as  those  where  old  oak  carvings  can  now  be  so  easily 
obtained — for  I  believe  Sir  Walter  Scott’s  adoption  of  these* 
articles  as  a  decoration,  gave  the  first  impulse  to  that  rage  for 
them  which  has  since  existed,  and  which  is  now  so  well  re¬ 
sponded  to  by  all  who  deal  in  other  antiquities.  This  letter 
brought  to  my  recollection  that  at  the  door  of  a  house  that 
stood  (and  still  stands)  in  a»wood-yard  at  the  foot  of  Wariston’s 
close,  in  the  High  Street,  there  was  a  white  painted  porch  with 
carvec1  panels,-  the  figures  upon  which  used,  long  before,  to  be 
a  subject  of  admiration  to  me  and  other  boys  attending  a  school 
in  the  neighborhood.  I  therefore  called  upon  the  owner,  and 
obtained  permission  to  examine  it.  Upon  doing  so,  I  found  it 
was  made  of  oak,  and  that  the  figures  in  the  panels  were  alle¬ 
gorical  of  the  cardinal  virtues,  &c.  The  owner  of  these  panels 
told  me  that  there  were  originally  twelve  of  them  ;  but  having 
found  that  eight  were  sufficient  for  his  porch,  he  had  sold  the 
other  four  to  a  friend  who  had  fitted  them  up  as  the  doors  of 
an  inclosed  bed.  He  told  me  also  that  he  had  purchased  them, 
with  some  other  old  wood,  in  the  neighborhood  of  Holyrood 
Palace,  in  one  of  the  apartments  of  which  they  had  originally 

17* 


198 


NOTES. 


formed  the  decoration  of  a  portion  of  the  'wall.  He  agreed  tq 
let  me  have  those  in  his  possession  for  as  much  money  as  would 
cover  the  expense  of  putting  up  a  new  porch  to  his  house,  the 
amount  of  which  he  was  to  ascertain,  and  at  the  same  time 
gave  me  the  address  of  the  party  who  had  purchased  the  other 
four.  When  I  acquainted  Sir  Walter  with  those  particulars, 
giving  him  at  the  same  time  a  sketch  of  the  panelling,  with  its 
dimensions,  he  immediately  replied,  authorizing  the  purchase 
of  it,  as  also  of  that  portion  which  the  original  proprietor  had 
parted  with,  as  the  panels  were  in  size,  shape,  and  style  the 
very  thing  he  required  fo£  the  completion  of  the  wainscoting  of 
the  entrance-hall;  and  desired  to  know  as  soon  as  possible 
whether  I  had  succeeded  in  procuring  the  whole  or  only  the 
portion  which  formed  the  porch;  “For,”  he  added,  “we  must 
cut  our  coat  according  to  our  cloth ;  and  if  we  only  get  the 
porch  we  must  then  just  stretch  our  leather  as  much  as  we  can.” 
The  whole  was  at  last  purchased,  and  now  forms  a  principal 
part  of  the  wainscoting  of  the  entrance-hall. 

*  I  now  regret  having  parted  with  the  letters  I  received  from 
Sir  Walter  at  this  time,  and  during  the  progress  of  the  decora¬ 
tions  ;  but  they  were  all  given  to  friends  who  collected  auto¬ 
graphs,  as  I  did  not  then  consider  that  I  should  ever  have  again 
to  refer  to  them. 

Again,  in  January,  1823,  he  writes  to  Mr.  Terry,  as  follows: 
“I  am  first  to  report  progress,  for  your  consideration  and  Mr. 
Atkinson’s,  of  what  I  have  been  doing  here.  Everything  about 
the  house  has  gone  cl  rieu  mieux ,  and  the  shell  is  completely 
finished ;  all  the  upper  story  and  garrets,  as  well  as  the  base¬ 
ment,  have  had  their  first  coat  of  plaster,  being  first  properly 
fenced  from  the  exterior  air.  The  only  things  which  we  now 
greatly  need  are  the  designs  for  ceilings  of  the  hall  and  draw¬ 
ing-room,  as  the  smiths  and  plasterers  are  impatient  for  their 
working  plans,  the  want  of  which  rather  stops  them.” — (Life, 
vol.  v.  p.  238.)  Again,  in  the  same  letter,  he  says: — “I  am 
completely  Lady  Wishfort  as  to  the  escritoire.  In  fact  my 
determination  would  very  much  depend  on  the  possibility  of 
showing  it  to  advantage ;  for  if  it  be  such  as  is  set  up  against 


NOTES, 


199 


a  wall,  like  what  is  called,  par  excellence ,  a  writing-desk,  you 
know  we  have  no  space  in  the  library  that  is  not  occupied  by 
book-presses.  If,  on  the  contrary,  it  stands  quite  free,  why,  I 
do  not  know — I  must  e’en  leave  it  to  you  to  decide  between 
taste  and  prudence.  The  silk  damask,  I  fancy,  we  must  have 
for  the  drawing-room  curtains ;  those  in  the  library  we  shall 
have  of  superfine  crimson  cloth  from  Galashiels,  made  of  mine 
own  wool.  I  should  like  the  silk  to  be  sent  down  in  the  bales, 
as  I  wish  these  curtains  to  be  made  up  on  a  simple,  useful  pattern, 
without  that  paltry  trash  of  drapery,  &c.  &c.  .... 
The  chairs  will  be  most  welcome.  Packing  is  a  most  important 
article,  and  I  must  be  indebted  to  your  continued  goodness  for 
putting  that  into  proper  hands.” 

The  building  was  sufficiently  advanced  by  the  beginning  of 
1824  to  admit  of  the  painting  being  commenced.  I  therefore, 
with  ten  assistants,  repaired  to  Abbotsford  on  the  21st  of  Feb¬ 
ruary  for  that  purpose.  The  style  of  the  painting  having  been 
often  discussed  during  the  progress  of  the  building,  I  had  thereby 
acquired  a  perfect  understanding  of  Sir  Walter’s  ideas  upon  the* 
subject,  and,  consequently,  no  specific  orders  were  required  on 
this  occasion.  Indeed  Sir  Walter  was  himself  often  at  Abbots¬ 
ford  during  the  progress  of  the  work. 

The  old  carved  oak  fitted  up  in  the  entrance-hall,  gave  a  key 
to  the  decoration  of  that  apartment.  Above  the  wainscoting 
which  surrounds  the  wall  there  was  plain  deal-work  to  which 
the  ancient  armor,  warlike  instruments,  banners,  &c.  were  to 
be  fixed.  The  old  portraits,  mentioned  in  Sir  Walter’s  letter  to 
Mr.  Terry,  were  not  hung  in  this  apartment,  there  being  a 
sufficient  quantity  of  the  more  appropriate  kind  of  decoration 
just  detailed.  At  the  east  end  there  were  two  Gothic  niches  of 
the  richest  description,  and  large  enough  to  contain  figures  in 
full  suits  of  armor.  These,  and  another  very  handsome  niche 
at  the  other  end,  were  constructed  of  stucco  casts  from  originals 
in  stone  at  Melrose  Abbey.  The  ceiling  and  cornice  were  also 
of  stucco-work,  the  former  representing  massive  gothic  beams 
reaching  from  side  to  side,  intersected  in  the  centre  by  one 
principal  beam  reaching  from  end  to  end,  and  resting  upon 


200 


NOTES. 


brackets  with  shields  in  front  of  them,  and  at  the  intersections 
in  the  centre.  The  fire-place  was  surrounded  by  a  beautifully 
carved  stone  chimney-piece,  after  the  cloister  arches  at  Melrose 
Abbey.  The  windows  were  of  stained  glass.  Of  these  he  says, 
in  a  letter  to  Lord  Montague  (now  Duke  of  Buccleuch),  “As  I 
think  heraldry  is  always  better  than  any  other  subject,  I  intend 
that  the  upper  compartment  of  each  window  shall  have  the 
shield,  supporters,  &c.  of  one  of  the  existing  dignitaries  of  the 
Clan  Scott;  and,  of  course,  the  Duke’s  arms  and  your  Lord¬ 
ship’s  will  occupy  two  such  posts  of  distinction.  The  corres¬ 
ponding  two  will  be  Harden’s  and  Thirlestane’s,  the  only  families 
now  left  who  have  a  right  to  be  regarded  as  chieftains ;  and  the 
lower  compartments  of  each  window  will  contain  eight  shields 
(without  accompaniments),  of  good  gentlemen  of  the  name,  of 
whom  I  can  still  muster  sixteen  bearing  separate  coats  of  arms.” 
— ( Life  of  Scott,  vol.  v.  p.  269.)  To  the  best  of  my  recollec¬ 
tion,  some  difficulty  occurred  in  carrying  out  the  latter  part  of 
Sir  Walter’s  idea  in  regard  to  these  windows,  and  the  coats  of 
arms  of  the  sixteen  gentlemen  were  ultimately  painted  on  the 
wall  on  shields  arranged  round  the  entrance-door  to  the  study, 
appearing  to  be  linked  together  by  a  chain,  painted  also  on  the 
wall.  In  directing  the  painting  of  this  apartment,  Sir  Walter 
desired  that  it  should  all  be  done  in  imitation  of  oak :  not  like 
wood-work  newly  fitted  up,  but  to  resemble  the  old  oak  carvings 
as  much  as  possible.  Neither  would  he  allow  it  to  appear  like 
old  oak  newly  varnished,  as  he  had  strictly  forbid  the  varnish¬ 
ing  of  the  old  oak  itself.  He  said,  if  it  were  possible,  he  should 
like  the  whole  to  appear  somewhat  weather-beaten  and  faded, 
as  if  it  had  stood  untouched  for  many  years.  The  doors,  archi¬ 
traves,  and  part  of  the  wainscoting  were  fitted  up  with  new 
oak,  and  this  he  also  ordered  to  be  toned  down  to  match  the 
old  carvings.  All  this  was  accomplished  to  his  entire  satisfac¬ 
tion. 

The  shields  on  the  ceiling,  amounting  to  about  fifty  or  sixty 
in  number,  and  about  a  foot  and  a  half  square,  were,  like  the 
rest  of  the  ceiling-work,  made  of  stucco,  and  quite  plain. 
Those  that  covered  the  intersections  of  the  beams  along  the 


NOTES. 


201 


centre  he  allotted  to  the  armorial  hearings  of  his  own  family. 
Sir  Walter  took  great  interest  in  this  part  of  the  decorations. 
And  in  writing  to  Mr.  Terry  on  the  29th  October,  1843,  he  says, 
“The  interior  of  the  hall  is  finished  with  scutcheons,  sixteen  of 
which  running  along  the  centre,  I  intend  to  paint  with  my  own 
quarterings,  so  far  as  I  know  them,  for  I  am  uncertain  as  yet  of 
two  on  my  mother’s  side.  .  .  .  The  scutcheons  on  the 

cornice  I  propose  to  charge  with  the  blazonry  of  all  the  Border 
clans,  eighteen  in  number,  and  so  many  of  the  great  families,  not 
clans,  as  will  occupy  the  others.  The  windows  are  to  be  painted 
with  the  different  bearings  of  different  families  of  the  clan  of 
Scott,  which  with  their  quarterings  and  impalings  will  make  a 
pretty  display.” — {Ibid.  v.  p.  313.)  Again,  in  writing  to  Mr. 
Constable  on  the  29th  of  March,  1824,  he  says,— “For  the  roof- 
tree  I  tried  to  blazon  my  own  quarterings,  and  succeed  easily 
with  eight  on  my  father’s  side  ;  but  on  my  mother’s  side  I  stuck 
fast  at  the  mother  of  my  great-great-grandfather.  ...  If 
I  could  find  out  these  Rutherfords,  and  who  they  married,  I 
could  complete  my  tree,  which  is  otherwise  correct ;  but  if  not, 
I  will  paint  clouds  on  these  three  shields,  with  the  motto 
Vixerunt  portes  ante.” — {Ibid.  v.  p.  345.)  Sir  Walter  did  not 
succeed  in  his  inquiries,  therefore  the  three  shields  in  question 
were  painted  in  clouds,  but  with  a  different  motto  from  the 
above,  the  words  of  which  I  do  not  recollect.  The  shields  at 
the  ends  of  the  cross-beams  contained  the  scutcheons  of  the 
eighteen  Border  clans,  and  those  of  about  twenty  other  distin¬ 
guished  families.  For  some  of  these  Sir  Walter  had  got  small 
sketches  by  a  young  gentleman  of  Jedburgh,  an  amateur,  but 
they  were  far  from  being  correct,  which,  when  pointed  out  to 
Sir  Walter,  he  said  it  would  be  better  to  begin  de  novo,  and 
take  them  all,  or  as  many  as  I  could  find,  from  Nisbet’s 
heraldry  and  other  books  in  his  study,  and  added,  that  I  might 
come  into  that  apartment  for  this  purpose  at  all  times,  whether 
he  was  there  or  not,  as  it  would  not  in  the  least  disturb  him. 
One  error  committed  in  the  drawings  of  the  amateur  amused 
him  a  good  deal.  Amongst  the  sub-ordinaries  in  heraldry  there 
is  a  figure  called  Torteaux,  representing  a-  little  circular  cake  of 


202  . 


NOTES. 


bread,  of  which  Nisbet  quotes  from  a  Spanish  herald  the  follow¬ 
ing  story: — “One  of  the  kings  of  Spain  being  to  give  battle  to 
the  Moors,  convened  his  principal  captains  and  commanders  to 
eat ;  telling  them,  that  so  many  cakes  as  they  did  eat,  each  of 
them  would  kill  as  many  Moors :  and  after  a  memorable  victory, 
considering  how  many  cakes  each  had  ate,  some  five,  eight,  or 
twelve,  took  as  many  torteauxes  in  their  arms,  or  added  them 
to  their  ancient  bearings ;  and  this  is  the  reason  why  so  many 
torteauxes  are  carried  in  the  arms  of  the  nobles  of  Andalusia,  so 
that  they  are  taken  by  the  French,  Italians,  Spanish,  English, 
and  us,  for  cakes  of  bread.”  Sir  Walter  seemed  much  interested 
by  this  quotation,  and  as  the  amateur  had  emblazoned  the 
shield  of  the  Blairs  of  Balthyock  with  three  tortoises,  instead 
of  torteauxes,  he  was  greatly  pleased  that  the  error  had  been 
detected ;  for  he  considered,  as  he  expresses  himself  on  a 
similar  subject,  in  the  letter  to  Mr.  Constable  already  referred 
to — “These  things  are  trifles  when  correct,  but  very  absurd 
and  contemptible  when  otherwise.”  He  was  much  amused 
with  the  idea  of  the  ancestor  of  the  Blairs  having  eaten  three 
reptiles  instead  of  cakes,  before  going  to  battle,  and  often  after¬ 
wards  referred  to  this  particular  shield,  and  the  story  of  the 
Spanish  king. 

.  When  all  the  shields  were  emblazoned,  Sir  Walter  gave  me 
instructions  to  paint  an  inscription  in  ancient  black  letters  along 
the  top  of  the  wall  on  the  side  opposite  the  entrance  door,  the 
inscription  was  nearly  in  the  following  words :  “These  be  the 
coats  armories  of  the  clans  and  men  of  name  wha  keepit  the 
Scottish  Borders  in  the  days  of  old.”  This  was  so  arranged 
that  one  long  word,  or  two  short  ones,  came  between  each  pair 
of  shields,  and  when  finished  greatly  improved  the  general 
effect  in  a  decorative  point  of  view,  by  forming  a  connecting 
link  between  the  scutcheons  on  that  side  of  the  hall.  On 
observing  to  Sir  Walter  that  something  of  a  similar  kind  would 
be  required  to  balance  it  on  the  other  side,  he  agreed  that  there 
certainly  was  a  want  of  balance,  and  said  he  would  bring  me 
something  to  fill  up  the  vacant  spaces.  In  a  very  few  minutes 
he  returned  with  the  following  context,  written  on  a  slip  of 


NOTES.* 


203 


paper— “  They  were  worthy  and  brave  in  their  times,  and  in 
their  defence  God  he  them  defended.” 

Before  hanging  up  the  armor,  or  placing  the  full  suits  of 
mail  in  the  niches,  Sir  Walter  was  most  anxious  to  have  all  the 
steel  and  iron  secured  from  rusting,  which  he  feared  it  would 
be  liable  to'  in  an  apartment  like  the  entrance-hall  where  the 
external  air  was  necessarily  so  often  admitted,  and  in  all  states 
of  the  atmosphere  too.  This  I  accomplished  by  having  all  the 
coats  of  mail  and  warlike  instruments  cleaned  with  rotton-stone 
and  water,  and,  when  perfectly  dry,  placing  them  before  a  good 
fire,  and  giving  them  a  thin  coat  of  the  clearest  copal  varnish. 
I  saw  them  about  fifteen  years  thereafter  without  the  slightest 
mark  of  rust  upon  them,  and  I  believe  they  remain  so  till  this 
day.  While  the  cleaning  and  varnishing  was  going  on,  Sir 
Walter  carefully  watched  its  progress,  and  used  often  to  admire 
the  effects  of  the  light,  as  it  fell  upon  the  armor  through  the 
stained  glass  windows  while  it  lay  in  groups  upon  the  floor  of 
the  hall. 

On  one  occasion  when  a  largeish  quantity  of  it  was  heaped  up 
opposite  the  windows,  and  by  chance  pretty  well  grouped,  the 
sun’s  rays  striking  upon  it  tinged  with  the  various  hues  of  the 
stained  glass,  he  expressed  himself  strongly  regarding  its 
beauty,  adding,  “I  wish  my  friend  William  Allan  were  here — 
what  a  glorious  study  for  him!”  In  regard  to  the  armor,  he 
says  to  Mr.  Terry,  in  writing  to  him  on  the  9th  of  January 
1823 — “  My  wainscot  will  not  be  altogether  seven  feet — about 
six.  Higher  it  cannot  be  because  of  the  pattern  of  the  Dun¬ 
fermline  part;  any  lower  I  would  not  have  it,  because  the 
armor,  &c.  must  be  suspended  beyond  the  reach  of  busy  rude 
fingers  to  which  a  hall  is  exposed.  You  understand  I  mean  to 
keep  lighter,  smaller,  and  more  ornate  objects  of  curiosity  in 
the  present  little  room,  and  have  only  the  massive  and  large 
specimens,  with  my  fine  collection  of  horns,  &c.  in  the  hall.” 

In  reference  to  the  cedar  already  mentioned,  he  says  in  the 
same  letter — “The  cedar,  I  assure  you,  is  quite  beautiful.  I 
have  seen  it  sawn  out  into  planks,  and  every  one  who  looks  at 
it  agrees  it  will  be  more  beautiful  than  oak.  Indeed,  what  I 


204 


NOTES, 


have  seen  of  it  put  to  that  use,  bears  no  comparison  unless  with 
such  heart  of  oak  as  Baldock  employed,  and  that  you  know  is 
veneered.  I  do  not  go  on  the  cry  in  this,  but  practical  know¬ 
ledge.  Mr.  Waugh,  my  neighbor,  a  West  Indian  Planter  (but 
himself  bred  a  joiner)  has  finished  the  prettiest  apartment 
with  it  that  I  ever  saw.  ....  I  give  up  the  Boslin  drop 
in  the  oratory ;  indeed  I  have  long  seen  it  would  not  do.  I 
think  the  termination  of  it  may  be  employed  as  the  central  part 
of  Mr.  Atkinson’s  beautiful  plan  for  the  recess  in  the  library;  by 
the  by,  the  whole  of  that  ceiling,  writh  the  heads  we  have  got, 
will  be  the  prettiest  thing  ever  seen  in  these  parts.” — (P.  239.) 

The  whole  of  this  ceiling,  with  its  pendants,  was  painted  in 
imitation  of  the  cedar  of  which  the  fittings  were  made  ;  but  the 
wall  between  the  top  of  the  book-cases  and  ceiling  gave  Sir 
Walter  a  great  deal  of  concern.  This  formed  a  narrow  stripe  all 
round  the  apartment,  and  it  could  not  be  done  in  any  of  the 
usual  modes  of  wall  decoration,  as  the  book-cases  were  actually 
part  of  the  fittings  of  the  room,  and  had  not  the  slightest 
appearance  of  being  placed  against  the  wall  like  pieces  of  furni¬ 
ture.  At  last  the  idea  of  a  piece  of  painted  imitation  drapery 
hanging  from  the  cornice  was  suggested  to  him,  and  he  at  once 
adopted  it.  It  was  painted  of  a  sombre  hue  of  green,  in  order 
to  relieve  the  red  hue  of  the  cedar,  which  it  effectually  did  ;  and 
that  it  might  also  partake  of  the  richness  of  the  backs  of  the 
books  with  which  the  cases  underneath  it  were  filled,  it  was 
embellished  with  devices  in  gold  color.  Sir  Walter  often  said 
that  this  was  the  only  part  of  the  decorative  painting  that  he 
could  not  come  to  a  decision  upon  in  his  own  mind,  but  when 
he  saw  it  finished  he  expressed  himself  highly  gratified,  and 
his  mind  relieved  of  an  uncertainty  that  had  occasioned  him 
some  uneasiness. 

Notwithstanding  the  length  of  this  note,  it  can  scarcely  be 
considered  complete  without  the  addition  of  the  following 
quotation  from  the  correspondence  of  the  great  man  whose 
ideas  on  decoration  it  is  intended  to  elucidate.  To  his  friend 
Mr.  Terry  he  says,  on  18th  February,  1824, — “Your  very  kind 
letter  reached  me  here  (Abbotsford)  so  that  I  was  enabled  to 


NOTES. 


205 


send  you  immediately  an  accurate  sketch  of  the  windows  and 
chimney-sides  of  the  drawing-room,  to  measurement.  I  should 
like  the  mirrors  handsome,  and  the  frames  plain  ;  the  color  of 
the  hangings  (meaning  the  paper)  is  green,  with  rich  Chinese 
figures  On  the  side  of  the  window  I  intend  to  have  exactly 
beneath  the  glass,  a  plain  white  side-table  of  the  purest  marble, 
on  which  to  place  Chantrey’s  bust.  A  truncated  pillar  of  the 
same  marble  will  be  its  support ;  and  I  think  that,  besides  the 
mirror  above,  there  will  be  a  plate  of  mirror  below  the  table  ; 
these  memoranda  will  enable  Baldock  [a  London  upholsterer] 
to  say  at  what  price  these  points  can  be  handsomely  accom¬ 
plished.  I  have  not  yet  spoken  about  the  marble  table  ;  per¬ 
haps  they  may  be  all  got  in  London.  I  shall  be  willing  to  give 
a  handsome,  but  not  an  extravagant  price.  I  am  much  obliged 
to  Mr.  Baldock  for  Ms  confidence  about  the  screen.  But  what 
says  poor  Richard  ?  ‘  Those  who  want  money  when  they  come 
to  buy,  are  apt-to  want  money  when  they  come  to  pay.’  Again 
poor  Dick  observes, — 

‘  That  in  many  you  find  the  true  gentleman’s  fate. 

Ere  his  house  is  complete  he  has  sold  his  estate.’ — 

So  we  will  adjourn  the  consideration  of  the  screen  till  other 
times ;  let  us  first  have  the  needful  got  and  paid  for.  The 
stuff  for  the  windows  in  the  drawing-room  is  the  crimson 
damask  silk  we  bought  last  year.  I  inclose  a  scrap  of  it  that 
the  fringe  may  be  made  to  match.  I  propose  they  should  be 
hung  with  large  handsome  brass  rings  upon  a  brass  cylinder, 
and  I  believe  it  would  be  best  to  have  these  articles  from  Lon¬ 
don, — I  mean  the  rings  and  cylinders ;  but  I  dislike  much 
complication  in  the  mode  of  drawing  them  separate,  as  it  is 
eternally  going  wrong  ;  those  which  divide  in  the  middle,  draw¬ 
ing  back  on  each  side  like  the  curtain  of  an  old-fashioned  bed, 
and  when  drawn  back  are  secured  by  a  loop  and  tassel,  are,  I 
think,  the  handsomest,  and  can  easily  be  made  on  the  spot ;  the 
fringe  should  be  silk,  of  course.  I  think  the  curtains  of  the 
library,  considering  the  purpose  of  the  room,  require  no  fringe 
at  all.  We  have,  I  believe,  settled  that  they  shall  not  be  drawn 
18 


206 


NOTES. 


in  a  line  across  the  recess,  as  in  the  drawing-room,  but  shall 
circle  along  the  inside  of  the  windows.  I  refer  myself  to  Mr. 
Atkinson  about  the  fringe,  but  I  think  a  little  mixture  of  gold 
would  look  handsome  with  the  crimson  silk.  As  for  the  library, 
a  yellow  fringe,  if  any.  I  send  a  draught  of  the  window  in¬ 
closed  ;  the  architraves  are  not  yet  up  in  the  library,  but  they 
are  accurately  computed  from  the  drawings  of  my  friend  Mr. 
A.tkinson.  There  is  plenty  of  time  to  think  about  these  mat¬ 
ters,  for  of  course  the  rooms  must  be  painted  before  they  are 
put  up.  I  saw  the  presses  yesterday ;  they  are  very  hand¬ 
some,  and  remind  me  of  the  awful  job  of  arranging  my  books. 
About  July,  Abbotsford,  I  think,  will  be  finished,  when  I  shall, 
like  the  old  Duke  of  Queensberry  who  built  Drumlanrig,  fold  up 
the  accounts  in  a  sealed  parcel,  with  a  label  bidding  ‘  the  deil 
pike  out  the  een  of  ony  of  my  successors  that  shall  open  it.’  ” 

Note  D,  p.  156. 

Upon  this  subject  Professor  Hosking  makes  the  following  ex¬ 
cellent  remarks — ‘‘The  exhumated  city  of  Pompeii  has  very 
clearly  proved  that  notwithstanding  the  extent  and  general 
beauty  of  the  public  buildings  of  the  Romans,  the  houses  of 
the  commonalty  were  exceedingly  plain  and  confined,  while 
those  of  the  higher  classes,  though  internally  elegant,  were 
externally  unpretending.  The  rooms  were  small  and  badly 
arranged,  imperfectly  secluded  from  the  public  gaze,  and  quite 
exposed  to  the  inmates ;  pervious  alike  to  the  summer’s  heat 
and  winter’s  cold.  Indeed  the  house  of  a  Roman  gentleman 
presents  a  very  convenient  model  for  a  prison,  but  without  many 
of  the  comforts  which  in  modern  times  are  thought  necessary 
even  in  such  places. 

“In  consequence  of  the  refinements  which  now  pervade  the 
manners,  habits,  and  customs  of  civilized  life,  and  civilization 
having  extended  itself  from  the  noble  and  the  learned  through 
almost  the  whole  social  system,  men  are  no  longer  contented  to 
admire  the  beauty  and  magnificence  of  public  edifices,  whether 
ecclesiastical  or  civil,  and  to  witness  the  splendor  and  elegance 


NOTES. 


207 


of  the  palaces  and  mansions  of  the  wealthy ;  but  all  are  anxious 
to  see  in  their  own  habitations  that  degree  of  decoration  and 
beauty  which  they  find  so  productive  of  pleasure  and  pleasura¬ 
ble  emotions.  Thus  architecture  is  no  longer  confined  to  the 
temples  of  the  Divinity  and  the  palaces  of  the  great,  but  its 
beauties  are  sought  everywhere.  In  every  edifice  whose  inhabit¬ 
ants  have  been  fitted  by  education  and  habit  to  appreciate  and 
enjoy  the  charm  which  arises  from  symmetry  of  form,  beauty 
of  proportion,  and  elegance  of  detail,  the, aid  of  architecture  is 
required.” — ( Encyclopedia,  Britannica ,  Art.  ‘ Architecture ,’  p.  28.) 
In  another  part  (p.  44)  the  Professor  observes,  that  “A  person 
accustomed  to  the  comforts  and  conveniences  of  houses  in  this 
country  finds  much  to  complain  of  in  a  modern  Italian  mansion, 
but  not  so  much  as  an  Italian  would  in  the  house  of  an  ancient 
Roman ;  and  from  analogy  we  may  believe  that  a  Roman  of  the 
empire  would  have  reason  to  complain  of  a  Grecian  domicile, 
even  of  the  Periclean  age ;  and  a  Greek  again  might  have  been 
abridged  of  the  comforts  of  his  house  in  the  palace  of  an  Egyp¬ 
tian.” 


JPR.A_CTICA.Ij 


AN  D 

SCIENTIFIC  BOOKS, 

PUBLISHED  BY 

HENRY  CAREY  BAIRD, 

INDUSTRIAL  PUBLISHER, 

1ST o.  406  W^.XjNTTJT  STREET, 
PHILADELPHIA. 

4®-  Any  of  the  folio-wing  Books  will  be  sent  by  mail,  free  of  postage,  at  th® 
publication  price.  Catalogues  furnished  on  application. 


American  Miller  and  Millwright’s  Assistant : 

A  new  and  thoroughly  revised  Edition,  with  additional  En¬ 
gravings.  By  WiLLfAM  Carter  Hughes.  In  one  Volume, 
12mo . . v . . $1.50 

Armengaud,  Amoroux,  and  Johnson. 

THE  PRACTICAL  DRAUGHTSMAN’S  BOOK  OP 
INDUSTRIAL  DESIGN,  and  Machinist’s  and  Engineer’s 
Drawing  Companion;  forming  a  complete  course  of  Mechan¬ 
ical  Engineering  and  Architectural  Drawing.  From  the 
French  of  M.  Armengaud  the  elder,  Prof,  of  Design  in  the 
Conservatoire  of  Arts  and  Industry,  Paris,  and  MM.  Ar¬ 
mengaud  the  younger,  and  Amoroux,  Civil  Engineers.  Re¬ 
written  and  arranged  with  additional  matter  and  plates, 
selections  from  ai$d  examples  of  the  most  useful  and  gener¬ 
ally  employed  mechanism  of  the  day.  By  William  Johnson, 
Assoc.  Inst.  C.  E.,  Editor  of  “The  Practical  Mechanic’s 
Journal.”  Illustrated  by  fifty  folio  steel  plates  and  fifty 
wood-cuts.  A  new  edition,  4to . . $10.00 

Among  the  contents  are:— Linear  Drawing ,  Definitions  and  Problems^ 
Plate  I.  Applications,  Designs  for  inlaid  Pavements,  Ceilings,  and  Balco¬ 
nies,  Plate  II.  Sweeps,  Sections,  and  Mouldings,  Plate  III.  Elementary 


PRACTICAL  AID  SCIENTIFIC  BOOKS. 


Gothic  Forms  and  Rosettes,  Plate  IV.  Ovals,  Ellipses,  Parabolas,  and 
Volutes,  Plate  V.  Rules  and  Practical  Data.  Study  of  Projections ,  Ele 
mentary  Principles,  Plate  VI.  Of  Prisms  and  other  Solids,  Plate  VII 
Rules  and  Practical  Data.  On  Coloring  Sections ,  with  Applications — Conven 
tional  Colors,  Composition  or  Mixture  of  Colors,  Plate  X.  Continuation  oj 
the  Study  of  Projections — Use  of  sections — details  of  machinery,  Plate  XI 
Simple  applications — spindles,  shafts,  couplings,  wooden  patterns,  Plate  XII 
Method  of  constructing  a  wooden  model  or  pattern  of  a  coupling,  Elemen 
tary  applications— rails  and  chairs  for  railways,  Plate  XIII.  Rules  aru 
Practical  Data — Strength  of  material,  Resistance  to  compression  or  crush 
ing  force,  Tensional  Resistance,  Resistance  to  flexure.  Resistance  to  torsion 
Friction  of  surfaces  in  contact.  . 

The  Intersection  and  Development  of  Surfaces  with  Applica¬ 
tions. — The  Intersection  of  Cylinders  and  Cones ,  Plate  XIV.  The  Delineation 
and  Development  of  Helices ,  Screws,  and  Serpentines ,  Plate  XV.  Application 
of  the  helix — the  construction  of  a  staircase,  Plate  XVI.  The  Intersectioa 
of  surfaces— applications  to  stopcocks,  Plate  XVII.  Rules  and  Practical 
Data — Steam,  Unity  of  heat,  Heating  surface,  Calculation  of  the  dimensions 
of  boilers,  Dimensions  of  fire  grates,  Chimneys,  Safety  valves. 

The  Study  and  Construction  of  Toothed  Gear. — Involute,  cycloid, 
and  epicycloid,  Plates  XVIII.  and  XIX.  Involute,  Fig.  1,  Plate  XVIII. 
Cycloid,  Fig.  2,  Plate  XVIII.  External  epicycloid,  described  by  a  circle 
rolling  about  a  fixed  circle  inside  it,  Fig.  3,  Plate  XIX.  Internal  epicycloid. 
Fig.  2,  Plate  XIX.  Delineation  of  a  rack  and  pinion  in  gear(  Fig.  4,  Plate 
XVIII.  Gearing  of  a  worm  with  a  worm-wheel,  Figs.  5  and  6,  Plate  XVIII. 
Cylindrical  or  Spur  Gearing ,  Plate  XIX.  Practical  delineation  of  a  couple  of 
Spur-wheels,  Plate  XX.  The  Delineation  and  Construction  of  Wooden  Patterns 
for  Toothed  Wheels,  Plate  XXI.  Rules  and  Practical  Data — Toothed  gearing, 
Angular  and  circumferential  velocity  of  wheels,  Dimensions  of  gearing, 
Thickness  of  the  teeth,  Pitch  of  the  teeth,  Dimensions  of  the  web,  Number 
and  dimensions  of  the  arms,  wooden  patterns. 

Continuation  of  the  Study  of  Toothed  Gear. — Design  for  a  pair 
of  bevel-wheels  in  gear,  Plate  XXII.  Construction  of  wooden  patterns  for 
a  pair  of  bevel-wheels,  Plate  XXIII.  Involute  and  Helical  Teeth ,  Plate  XXIV. 
Contrivances  for  obtaining  Differential  Movements— The  delineation  of  eccen¬ 
trics  and  cams,  Plate  XXV.  Rules  and  Practical  Data— Mechanical  work  of 
effect,  The  simple  machines,  Centre  of  gravity,  On  estimating  the  power  of 
prime  movers,  Calculation  for  the  brake,  The  fall  of  bodies,  Momentum, 
Central  forces. 

Elementary  Principles  of  Shadows.— Shadows  of  Prisms,  Pyramids 
and  Cylinders,  Plate  XXVI.  Principles  of  Shading,  Plate  XXVII.  Continua¬ 
tion  of  the  Study  of  Shadows,  Plate  XXVIII.  Tuscan  Order,  Plate  XXIX. 
Rules  and  Practical  Data — Pumps,  Hydrostatic  principles,  Forcing  pumps, 
Lifting  and  forping  pumps,  The  Hydrostatic  press,  Hvdrostatical  calcula¬ 
tions  and  data— discharge  of  water  through  different  orifices,  Gauging  of  a 
water-course  of  uniform  section  and  fall,  Velocity  of  the  bottom  of  water¬ 
courses,  Calculations  of  the  discharge  of  water  through  rectangular  orifices 
of  narrow  edges,  Calculation  of  the  discharge  of  water  through  overshot 
outlets,  To  determine  the  width  of  an  overshot  outlet,  To  determine  the 
depth  of  the  outlet,  Outlet  with  a  spout  or  duct. 

Application  of  Shadows  to  Toothed  Gear,  Plate  XXX.  Application 
of  Shadows  to  Screws,  Plate  XXXI.  Application  of  Shadows  to  a  Boiler  and  its 
furnace,  Plate  XXXII.  Shading  in  Black — Shading  in  Colors,  Plate  XXXIII. 

The  Cutting  and  Shaping  of  Masonry,  Plate  XXXIV.  Rules  and  Prac¬ 
tical  Data — Hydraulic  motors,  Undershot  water-wheels,  with  plane  floats 
and  a  circular  channel,  Width,  Diameter,  Velocity,  Number,  and  capacity  of 
the  buckets,  Useful  effect  of  the  water-wheel,  Overshot  water-wheels,  Water¬ 
wheels  with  radical  floats,  Water-wheel  with  curved  buckets,  Turbines. 
Remarks  on  Machine  Tools. 

The  Study  of  Machinery  and  Sketching. — Various  applications  and 
combinations :  The  Sketching  of  Machinery,  Plates  XXXV.  and  XXXVI. 
Drilling  Machines ;  Motive  Machines;  Water-wheels,  Construction  and  set¬ 
ting  up  of  water-wheels,  Delineation  of  water-wheels,  Design  of  a  water¬ 
wheel,  Sketch  of  a  water-wheel ;  Overshot  Water-wheels,  Water  Pumps,  Plate 
XXXVII.  Steam  Motors;  High-pressure  expansive  steam-engine,  Plates 
XXXVIII.,  XXXIX.,  and  XL.  Details  of  Construction;  Movements  of  the 
Distribution  and  Expansion  Valves  ;  Rules  and  Practical  Data — Steam-engines : 
Low-pressure  condensing  engines  without  expansion  valve,  Diameter 


PUBLISHED  BY  HENRY  CAREY  BAIRD. 


of  piston,  Velocities,  Steam  pipes  and  passages,  Air-pump  and  condenser, 
Cold-water  and  feed-pumps,  High-pressure  expansive  engines,  Medium  pres¬ 
sure  condensing  and  expansive  steam-engine,  Conical  pendulum  or  centri¬ 
fugal  governor. 

Oblique  Projections.— Application  of  rules  to  the  delineation  of  an 
oscillating  cylinder,  Plate  XLI. 

Parallel  Perspective.— Principles  and  applications,  Plate  XLII. 

True  Perspective. — Elementary  principles,  Plate  XLIII.  Applications 
— flour  mill  driven  by  belts,  Plates  XLIV.  and  XLV.  Description  of  the 
mill,  Representation  of  the  mill'in  perspective,  Notes  of  recent  improve¬ 
ments  in  flour  mills,  Schiele’s  mill,  Mullin’s  “ring  millstone,”  Barnett’s 
millstone,  Hastie’s  arrangement  for  driving  mills,  Currie’s  improvements  in 
millstones.  Rules  and  Practical  Data — Work  performed  by  various  ma¬ 
chines,  Flour  mills,  Saw-mills,  Veneer  sawing  machines,  Circular  saws. 

Examples  of  Finished  Drawings  of  Machinery.— Plate  A,  Balance 
water-meter ;  Plate  B,  Engineer’s  shaping  machine ;  Plates  C,  D,  E,  Express 
locomotive  engine;  Plate  F,  Wood  planing  machine;  Plate  G,  Washing 
machine  for  piece  goods ;  Plate  H,  power-loom ;  Plate  I,  Duplex  steam 
boiler  ;  Plate  J,  Direct-acting  marine  engines. 

Drawing  Instruments. 

Arrowsmith.  Paper-Hanger’s  Companion : 

By  James  Arrowsmith.  12mo.,  cloth . .  $1.25 

Baird.  The  American  Cotton  Spinner,  and 
Manager’s  and  Carder’s  Guide : 

A  Practical  Treatise  on  Cotton  Spinning ;  giving  the  Di¬ 
mensions  and  Speed  of  Machinery,  Draught  and  Twist  Calcu¬ 
lations,  etc. ;  with  notices. of  recent  Improvements  :  together 
with  Rules  and  Examples  for  making  changes  in  the  sizes 
and  numbers  of  Roving  and  Yarn.  Compiled  from  the  pa¬ 
pers  of  the  late  Robert  H.  Baird.  12mo . $1.50 

Contents.— Introduction  ;  On  the  Plan  of  a  Factory  Building ;  On  the 
Main  Gearing;  On  Water-wheels ;  Calculations  of  Horse- Power  for  Pro¬ 
pelling  Cotton  Spinning  Machinery  ;  Willie  or  Picking  Machine  ;  On  Wil- 
leying  Cotton ;  Spreading  Machine  ;  On  Spreading  Cotton  ;  Carding  ;  Cards 
and  Carding ;  Covering  Emery  Rollers  and  Emeries  ;  The  Drawing-frame ; 
Roving;  General  Remarks  on  Drawing  and  Roving;  Throstles:  Remarks 
on  Throstles ;  Mule  Spinning  ;  General  Observations  on  Mule  Spinning  ; 
Weaving;  Belting;  Miscellaneous  matters. 

Beans.  A  Treatise  on  Railroad  Curves  and 
the  Location  of  Railroads: 

By  E.  W.  Beans,  0.  E.  12mo.  (In  press.) 

Bishop.  A  History  of  American  Manufac¬ 
tures  : 

From  1608  to  1866  :  exhibiting  the  Origin  and  Growth  of 
the  Principal  Mechanic  Arts  and  Manufactures,  from  the 
Earliest  Colonial  Period  to  the  Present  Time ;  with  a  Notice 
of  the  Important  Inventions,  Tariffs,  and  the  Results  of  each 
Decennial  Census.  By  J.  Leander  Bishop,  M.  D. ;  to  which 
is  added  Notes  on  the  Principal  Manufacturing  Centres  and 
Remarkable  Manufactories.  By  Edward  Young  and  Edwin 
T.  Freedley.  In  three  vols.,  8vo . $8.00 


3 


PRACTICAL  AND  SCIENTIFIC  BOOKS, 


Blinn.  A  Practical  Workshop  Companion 
for  Tin,  Sheet-Iron,  and  Copper-Plate  Work¬ 
ers: 

Containing  Rules  for  describing  various  kinds  of  Patterns  used 
by  Tin,  Sheet-Iron,  and  Copper-Plate  Workers ;  Practical  Ge¬ 
ometry;  Mensuration  of  Surfaces  and  Solids;  Tables  of  the 
Weights  of  Metals,  Lead  Pipe,  etc. ;  Tables  of  Areas  and  Cir¬ 
cumferences  of  Circles  ;  Japan,  Varnishes,  Lackers,  Cements, 
Compositions,  etc.,  etc.  By  Leroy  J.  Blinn,  Master  Me¬ 
chanic.  With  over  One  Hundred  Illustrations.  12mo.  $2.50 


Contents. — Rules  for  Describing  Patterns. — An  Envelope  for  a  Cone,  A 
Frustrum  of  a  Cone,  A  Can  top  or  Deck  flange  ;  A  Pattern  for,  or  an  Enve¬ 
lope  for  a  Frustrum  of  a  Cone,  A  Tapering  Oval  Article  to  be  in  four  Sec¬ 
tions,  A  Tapering  Oval  Article  to  be  in  two  Sections,  A  Tapering  Oval  Ar¬ 
ticle,  A  Tapering  Oval  and  Oblong  Article,  the  sides  to  be  Straight,  with 
Quarter  Circle  corners,  to  be  in  two  Sections,  A  Tapering  Oval  or  Oblong 
Article,  the  sides  to  be  Straight,  one  end  to  be  a  Semicircle,  the  other  end 
to  be  Straight,  with  Quarter  Circle  corners,  to  be  in  two  Sections,  A  Tapering 
Oval  or  Oblong  Article,  the  sides  to  be  Straight,  with  Semicircle  ends,  to  be 
in  two  Sections,  Covering  of  Circular  Roofs,  Two  different  Principles,  To 
cover  a  Dome  by  the  first  Method,  To  cover  a  Dome  by  the  second  Method, 
To  ascertain  the  Outline  of  a  Course  of  covering  to  a  Dome,  without  refer¬ 
ence  to  a  Section  of  the  Dome,  To  describe  a  Pattern  for  a  Tapering  Square 
Article,  A  Square  Tapering  Article  to  be  in  two  Sections,  A  Tapering  Arti¬ 
cle,  the  Base  to  be  Square,  and  the  Top  a  Circle,  in  two  Sections,  A  Tapering 
Article,  the  Base  to  be  a  Rectangle,  and  the  Top  Square,  in  two  Sections,  A 
Tapering  Article,  the  Base  to  be  a  Rectangle,  and  the  Top  a  Circle,  in  two 
Sections,  A  Tapering  Article,  the  Top  and  Base  to  be  a  Rectangle,  in  two 
Sections,  Tapering  Octagon  Top  or  Cover,  A  Miter  Joint  at  Right  Angles  for 
a  Semicircle  Gutter,  A  Miter  Joint  at  any  Angle  for  a  Semicircle  Gutter, 
A  Miter  Joint  for  an  O  G  Gutter  at  Right  Angles,  A  Miter  Joint  for  an  O  G 
Cornice  at  Right  Angles,  also  an  Offset,  An  Octagon  O  G  Lamp  Top  or 
Cover,  A  T  Pipe  at  Right  Angles,  A  T  Pipe  at  any  Angle,  A  T  Pipe,  the 
Collar  to  be  smaller  than  the  Main  Pipe,  A  T  Pipe  at  any  Angle,  the  Collar 
to  set  on  one  side  of  the  Main  Pipe,  A  Pipe  to  fit  a  flat  Surface  at  any  Angle, 
as  the  Side  of  a  Roof  of  a  Building,  A  Pipe  to  fit  two  flat  Surfaces,  as  the 
Roof  of  a  Building,  An  Elbow  at  Right  Angles,  An  Elbow  Pattern  at  any 
Angle,  An  Elbow  in  three  Sections,  An  Elbow  in  four  Sections,  An  Elbow  in 
five  Sections,  A  Tapering  Elbow,  An  Oval  Boiler  Cover,  A  Flange  for  a  Pipe 
that  goes  on  the  Roof  of  a  Building,  Octagon  or  Square  Top  or  Cover, 
Steamer  Cover,  An  Ellipse  or  Oval,  having  two  Diameters  given,  An  Ellipse 
with  the  Rule  and  Compasses,  the  Transverse  and  Conjugate  Diameters 
being  given,  that  is,  the  Length  and  Width,  To  find  the  Centre  and  the  two 
Arcs  of  an  Ellipse,  To  find  the  Radius  and  Versed  Sine  for  a  given  Frustrum 
of  a  Cone,  Practical  Geometry,  Decimal  Equivalents  to  Fractional  Parts 
of  Lineal  Measurement,  Definitions  of  Arithmetical  Signs,  Mensuration  of 
Surfaces,  Mensuration  of  Solids  and  Capacities  of  Bodies,  Tables  of  Weights 
of  Iron,  Copper,  and  Lead,  Tables  of  the  Circumferences  and  Areas  of  Cir¬ 
cles,  Sizes  and  capacity  of  Tinware  in  form  of  Frustrum  of  a  Cone,  such  as 
Pans,  Dish  Kettles,  Pails,  Coffee-pots,  Wash  Bowls,  Dippers,  Measures, 
Druggists’  and  Liquor  Dealers’  Measures,  American  Lap  Welded  Iron 
Boiler  Flues,  Table  of  Effects  upon  Bodies  by  Heat,  Weight  of  Water. 
Effects  produced  by  Water  in  an  Aeriform  State,  Practical  Properties  of 
Water,  Effects  produced  by  Water  in  its  Natural  State,  Effects  of  Heat  at 
certain  Temperatures,  Tempering,  Effects  produced  by  Air  in  its  Natural 
and  in  a  Rarefied  State,  Table  of  the  Expansion  of  Atmospheric  Aii  by 
Heat,  Size,  Length,  Breadth,  and  Weight  of  Tin  Plates,  Crystallized  Tin 
Plate,  List  of  Calibre  and  Weights  of  Lead  Pipe,  Calibre  and  Weights  of 
Fountain  or  Aqueduct  Pipes,  To  ascertain  the  Weights  of  Pipes  of  various 
Metals,  and  any  Diameter  required,  Weight  of  a  Square  Foot  of  Sheet  Iron, 
Copper,  and  Brass,  as  per  Birmingham  Wire  Gauge,  Recapitulation  of 

4 


PUBLISHED  BY  HENRY  CAREY  BAIRD. 


Weights  of  Various  Substances.  Practical  Receipts. — Japanning  and  Var 
nishing,  Varnishes — Miscellaneous,  Lackers,  Cements,  Miscellaneous  Re¬ 
ceipts,  Britannia,  Solders,  etc.,  Strength  of  Materials. 

Booth  and  Morfit.  The  Encyclopedia  of 
Chemistry,  Practical  and  Theoretical : 

Embracing  its  application  to  the  Arts,  Metallurgy,  Mineral¬ 
ogy,  Geology,  Medicine,  and  Pharmacy.  By  James  C.-  Booth, 
Melter  and  Refiner  in  the  United  States  Mint,  Professor  of 
Applied  Chemistry  in  the  Franklin  Institute,  etc.,  assisted 
by  Campbell  Morfit,  author  of  “  Chemical  Manipulations,”  etc. 
7th  edition.  Complete  in  one  volume,  royal  8vo.  978  pages, 
with  numerous  wood-cuts  and  other  illustrations . $5.00 

Brewer;  (The  Complete  Practical.) 

Or  Plain,  Concise,  and  Accurate  Instructions  in  the  Art  of 
Brewing  Beer,  Ale,  Porter,  etc.,  etc.,  and  the  Process  of 
making  all  the  Small  Beers.  By  M.  Lafayette  Byrn,  M.  D. 
With  Illustrations.  12mo . $1.25 

Buckmaster.  The  Elements  of  Mechanical 
Physics. 

By  J.  C.  Buckmaster,  late  Student  in  the  Goverment  School 
of  Mines ;  Certified  Teacher  of  Science  by  the  Department 
of  Science  and  Art ;  Examiner  in  Chemistry  and  Physics 
in  the  Royal  College  of  Preceptors ;  and  late  Lecturer  in 
Chemistry  and  Physics  of  the  Royal  Polytechnic  Institute. 
Illustrated  with  numerous  engravings.  In  one  volume, 
12mo . . . . $2.00 

Contents.— The  Elements  of  Mechanical  Physics—  Chap.  I.— Statics  and  Dy¬ 
namics  ;  Force  ;  Gravitation  and  Weight ;  On  Matter — its  Mass,  Density, 
and  Volume.  II. — Centre  of  Gravity  ;  Stable  and  Unstable  Equilibrium  ; 
To  find  the  Centre  of  Gravity  of  a  Material  Straight  Line  of  Uniform  Den¬ 
sity  ;  To  find  the  Centre  of  Gravity  of  two  heavy  Points  joined  by  a  rigid 
bar  without  Weight ;  To  find  the  Centre  of  Gravity  of  a  number  of  heavy 
points  ;  To  find  the  Centre  of  Gravity  of  a  Material  Plain  Triangle.  III. — 
Levers  ;  Levers  are  of  th^ee  kinds  ;  Virtual  Velocity  ;  Balances  ;  The  Safety 
Valve  ;  Mechanical  Combinations  and  their  Advantages.  IV.— The  Wheel 
and  Axle  ;  The  Compound  Wheel  and  Axle.  V. — The  Pulley  ;  Wheels  and 
Pinions;  Cranks  and  Fly-Wheel.  VI.— The  Inclined  Plane;  The  Wedge; 
The  Screw.  VII. — Composition  and  Resolution  of  Forces.  VIIL— Falling 
Bodies  ;  Ascent  of  Bodies  ;  Projection  of  Bodies  Horizontally.  IX.— Mo¬ 
mentum.  X. — Sound  ;  The  Pendulum. 

Elements  of  Hydrostatics.— Chap.  I. — Hydrostatics  ;  Bramah  Hydrostatic 
Press.  II.— Specific  Gravity ;  Table  of  Specific  Gravities.  III.— Elastic  Fluids  ; 
The  Air  Pump  and  its  Operation  ;  The  Construction  of  the  Condenser  and  its 
Operation  ;  The  Barometer;  The  Action  of  the  Siphon  ;  How  to  Graduate 
a  common  Thermometer  ;  To  Reduce  the  Degrees  of  a  Thermometer  in  Fah¬ 
renheit’s  scale  to  a  centigrade  and  the  converse ;  The  Construction  of  a 
Siphon  gauge;  The  Construction  of  a  common  Pump  and  its  Operation  ; 
The  Construction  and  Operation  of  a  Force  Pump  ;  The  Operation  of  a  Fire 
Engine;  The  Operation  of  a  Lifting  Pump;  The  Hydraulic  Ram  ;  The 
Archi median  Screw  ;  The  Chain  Pump  ;  Mercurial  Steam  Gauge  ;  Examina¬ 
tion  Papers. 

Appendix.— Examples ;  Answers  to  Examples. 


5 


PRACTICAL  AND  SCIENTIFIC  BOOKS, 


Bullock.  The  Rudiments  of  Architecture 
and  Building: 

For  the  use  of  Architects,  Builders,  Draughtsmen,  Ma¬ 
chinists,  Engineers  and  Mechanics.  Edited  by  John  Bul¬ 
lock,  author  of  “  The  American  Cottage  Builder.”  Illus¬ 
trated  by  Two  Hundred  and  Fifty  Engravings.  *  In  one  vol¬ 
ume,  8vo. . $3.50 

Burgh.  The  Slide  Valve  Practically  Consid¬ 
ered. 

By  N.  P.  Burgh,  Engineer.  Completely  Illus.  12mo..  .$2.00 

Burgh.  Practical  Rules  for  the  Proportion  of 
Modern  Engines  and  Boilers  for  Land  and 
Marine  Purposes. 

By  N.  P.  Burgh,  Engineer.  12mo . $2.00 

Contents.  —  High  Pressure  Engines ;  Beam  Engines  (condensing)  : 
Narine  Screw  Engines;  Oscillating  Engines;  Valves,  etc.;  Land  and 
Marine  Boilers.  Miscellaneous. — Coal  Bunkers,  Marine ;  Decimals,  etc. ; 
Eccentric,  Position  of,  for  Land  Engines  ;  Eccentric,  Position  of,  for  Marine 
Screw  Engines  ;  Fire  Bars  ;  Keys  and  Cotters ;  Link  for  Land  Engine,  Ra¬ 
dius  of ;  Levers  ;  Link  for  Oscillating  Engine,  Radius  of;  Link  for  Marine 
Screw  Engine,  Radius  of;  Proportion  of  Connecting  Rods  having  Strap 
Ends ;  Paddle  Wheels,  Centres  of  Radius  Rods  ;  Plummer  Blocks  ;  Propor 
tions  of  Steam  Cocks  with  Plugs  secured  by  Nuts  and  Screws  ;  Proportion 
of  Marine  Cocks  ;  Proportions  of  Bolts,  Nuts,  etc.  ;  Proportions  ot  Pins, 
Studs,  Flanges,  etc. ;  Proportions  of  Copper  Pipes  ;  Proportions  of  Engines  ; 
Sliding  Quadrant ;  Toothed  Wheels  (Gearing).  Proportions  of  Engines  Pro¬ 
duced  by  the  Rules:  Proportions  of  an  Engine  20  HP  nominal ;  Proportions  of 
a  Condensing  Beam  Engine  150  HP  nominal ;  Proportions  of  a  Pair  of  Marine 
Engines  of  200  HP  Collectively  ;  Proportions  of  a  Pair  of  Oscillating  Engines, 
of  400  HP  Collectively  ;  Proportions  of  Boilers. 

Byrne.  Pocket  Book  for  Railroad  and  Civil 
Engineers. 

Containing  New,  Exact,  and  Concise  Methods  for  Laying 
out  Bailroad  Curves,  Switches,  Frog  Angles  and  Crossings  ; 
the  Staking  out  of  Work;  Leveling;  the  Calculation  of  Cut¬ 
tings,  Embankments,  Earth-work,  etc.  By  Oliver  Byrne. 
Illustrated,  18mo . $1.25 

Byrne.  The  Practical  Metal-Worker’s  As¬ 
sistant. 

Comprising  Metallurgic  Chemistry ;  the  Arts  of  Working  all 
Metals  and  Alloys  ;  Forging  of  Iron  and  Steel;  Hardening 
and  Tempering ;  Melting  and  Mixing  ;  Casting  and  Found¬ 
ing;  Works  in  Sheet  Metal;  the  Process  dependent  on  the 
Ductility  of  the  Metals  ;  Soldering;  and  the  most  Improved 
Processes  and  Tools  employed  by  Metal-Workers.  With 
*  the  Application  of  the  Art  of  Electro-Metallurgy  to  Manu¬ 
facturing  Processes  :  collected  from  Original  Sources,  and 


PUBLISHED  BY  HENRY  CAREY  BAIRD. 


from  the  Works  of  Holtzapffel,  Bergeron,  Leupold,  Plumier, 
Napier,  and  others.  By  Oliver  Byrne.  A  New,  Revised, 
and  Improved  Edition,  with  additions  by  John  Scoffern, 
M,  B.,  William  Clay,  William  Fairbairn,  F.  R.  S.,  and  James 
Napier.  With  Five  Hundred  and  Ninety-two  Engravings, 
illustrating  every  Branch  of  the  Subject.  In  one  volume, 
8vo.  652  pages . -..$7.00 

Contents. — Oil  Metallvirgic  Chemistry  ;  Special  Metallurgic  Operations  ; 
Recently  Patented  Refining  Processes ;  Refining  and  Working  of  Iron  ; 
Manufacture  of  Steel;  Forging  Iron  and  Steel;  On  Wrought-Iron  in  Large 
Masses  ;  General  Examples  of  Welding,  Hardening  and  Tempering;  Hard¬ 
ening  Cast  and  Wrought-Iron  ;  On  the  Application  of  iron  to  Ship-Build¬ 
ing  ;  The  Metals  and  Alloys  most  commonly  used  ;  Remarks  on  the  Char¬ 
acter  of  the  Metals  and  Alloys  ;  Melting  and  Mixing  the  Metals  ;  Casting 
and  Founding;  Works  in  Sheet  Metal  made  by  Joining ;  Works  in  Sheet 
Metal  made  by  raising  and  flattening  of  thin  Plates  of  Metal ;  Processes  de¬ 
pendent  on  Ductility  ;  Soldering ;  Shears  ;  Punches  ;  Drills  ;  Screw-cutting 
T  ools ;  Electro-Metallurgy. 

Byrne.  The  Handbook  for  the  Artisan,  Me¬ 
chanic,  and  Engineer. 

By  Oliver  Byrne.  Illustrated  by  11  large  plates  and  185 
wood  engravings.  8vo . $5.00 

Contents. — Grinding  Cutting  Tools  on  the  Ordinary  Grindstone  ;  Sharp¬ 
ening  Cutting  Tools  on  the  Oilstone;  Setting  Razors  ;  Sharpening  Cutting 
Tools  with  Artificial  Grinders  ;  Production  of  Plane  Surfaces  by  Abrasion  : 
Production  of  Cylindrical  Surfaces  by  Abrasion ;  Production  of  Conical 
Surfaces  by  Abrasion  ;  Production  of  Spherical  Surfaces  by  Abrasion  ;  Glass 
Cutting  ;  Lapidary  Work ;  Setting,  Cutting,  and  Polishing  Flat  and  Rounded 
Works  ;  Cutting  Faucets  ;  Lapidary  Apparatus  for  Amateurs ;  Gem  and 
Glass  Engraving  ;  Seal  and  Gem  Engraving ;  Cameo  Cutting  ;  Glass  Engrav¬ 
ing,  Varnishing,  and  Lackering;  General  Remarks  upon  Abrasive  Pro¬ 
cesses  ;  Dictionary  of  Apparatus  ;  Materials  and  Processes  for  Grinding 
and  Polishing,  commonly  employed  in  the  Mechanical  and  Useful  Arts. 

Byrne.  The  Practical  Model  Calculator : 

For  the  Engineer,  Mechanic,  Manufacturer  of  Engine  Work, 
Naval  Architect,  Miner,  and  Millwright.  By  Oliver  Byrne. 
1  vol.  8vo.,  nearly  600  pages . . . $4.50 

The  principal  objects  of  this  work  are  :  to  establish  model  calculations  to 
guide  practical  men  and  students ;  to  illustrate  every  practical  rule  and 
principle  by  numerical  calculations,  systematically  arranged  ;  to  give  infor- 
»  mation  and  data  indispensable  to  those  for  whom  it  is  intended,  thus  sur¬ 
passing  in  value  any  other  book  of  its  character  ;  to  economize  the  labor'  of 
the  practical  man,  and  to  render  his  every-day  calculations  easy  and  com¬ 
prehensive.  It  will  be  found  to  be  one  of  the  most  complete  and  valuable 
practical  books  ever  published. 

Cabinet-maker’s  and  Upholsterer’s  Compan¬ 
ion. 

Comprising  the  Rudiments  and  Principles  of  Cabinet-making 
and  Upholstery,  with  Familiar  Instructions,  illustrated  by 
Examples  for  attaining  a  proficiency  in  the  Art  of  Drawing, 
as  applicable  to  Cabinet-work;  the  processes  of  Veneering, 
Inlaying,  and  Buhl-work ;  the  Art  of  Dyeing  and  Staining 
,  Wood.  Bone,  Tortoise  Shell,  etc.  Directions  for  Lackering 

7 


PRACTICAL  AND  SCIENTIFIC  BOOKS, 


Japanning,  and  Tarnishing;  to  make  French  Polish;  to  pre- 
pare  the  best  Glues,  Cements  and  Compositions,  and  a  num¬ 
ber  of  Receipts  particularly  useful  for  workmen  generally. 
By  J.  Stokes.  In  one  vol.,  12mo.  With  Illustrations.  ..$1.25 

Calvert.  On  Improvements  and  Progress  in 
Dyeing  and  Calico  Printing  since  1851. 

Illustrated  with  Numerous  Specimens  t>f  Printed  and  Dyed 
Fabrics.  By  Dr.  F.  Grace  Calvert,  F.  R.  S.,  F.  C.  S.  A 
Lecture  delivered  before  the  Society  of  Arts.  Revised  and 
enlarged  by  the  author.  ( Nearly  Ready.) 

Carey.  The  Works  of  Henry  C.  Carey : 

CONTRACTION  OR  EXPANSION?  REPUDIATION 
OR  RESUMPTION?  Letters  to  Hon.  Hugh  McCulloch. 
8vo . 38 

FINANCIAL  CRISES,  their  Causes  and  Effects.  8vo. 
paper . 25 

FRENCH  AND  AMERICAN  TARIFFS  :  Compared  in  a 
Series  of  Letters  addressed  to  Mons.  M.  Chevalier.  8vo. 
paper . 50 

HARMONY  OF  INTERESTS:  Agricultural,  Manufacturing, 

and  Commercial.  8vo.,  paper . $1.00 

Do.  do.  cloth .  1.50 

LETTERS  TO  THE  PRESIDENT  OF  THE  UNITED 
STATES.  Paper . 75 

MANUAL  OF  SOCIAL  SCIENCE.  Condensed  from  Ca 
rey’s  “Principles  of  Social  Science.”  By  Kate  McKean. 
1  vol.,12mo . $2.25 

The  Text-Book  of  the  Universities  of  Berlin  (Prussia),  Pennsylvania, 
and  Michigan,  and  of  the  College  of  New  Jersey,  Princeton. 

MISCELLANEOUS  WORKS:  comprising  “Harmony  of  In 
terests,”  “  Money,”  “  Letters  to  the  President,”  “  French 
and  American  Tariffs,”  “ Financial  Crises,”  “The  Way  to 
Outdo  England  without  Fighting  Her,”  “  Resources  of  the 
Union,”  “The  Public  Debt,”  “  Contraction  or  Expansion?” 
etc.,  etc.  1  vol.  8vo.,  cloth . . . $3.50 

MONEY :  A  LECTURE  before  the  N.  Y.  Geographical  and 
Statistical  Society.  8vo.,  paper . 25 

PAST,  PRESENT,  AND  FUTURE  8vo . $2.50 

PRINCIPLES  OF  SOCIAL  SCIENCE.  3  volumes.  8vo., 

cloth . $10.00 

Contents. — Volume  I :  Of  Science  and  its  Methods  $  Of  Man,  the  Subject 
of  Social  Science  ;  Of  Increase  in  thf*  Numbers  of  Mankind ;  Of  the  Occu¬ 
pation  of  the  Earth  ;  Of  Value  ;  Of  Wealth  ;  Of  the  Formation  of  Society ; 
8 


PUBLISHED  BY  HENRY  CARET  BAIRD. 


Of  Appropriation ;  Of  Changes  of  Matter  in  Place ;  Of  Mechanical  and 
Chemical  Changes  in  the  Forms  of  Matter.  Volume  II :  Of  Vital  Changes 
in  the  Form  of  Matter  ;  Of  the  Instrument  of  Association.  Volume  III :  Of 
Production  and  Consumption ;  Of  Accumulation ;  Of  Circulation ;  Of  Dis¬ 
tribution  ;  Of  Concentration  and  Centralization  ;  Of  Competition  ;  Of  Popu¬ 
lation  ;  Of  Food  and  Population ;  Of  Colonization ;  Of  the  Malthusian 
Theory  ;  Of  Commerce  ;  Of  the  Societary  Organization ;  Of  Social  Science. 

THE  PUBLIC  DEBT,  LOCAL  AND  NATIONAL.  How 
to  provide  for  its  discharge  while  lessening  the  burden  of 
Taxation.  Letter  to  David  A.  Wells,  Esq.,  U.  S.  Revenue 

Commission.  8vo.,  paper,  i . 25 

THE  RESOURCES  OF  THE  UNION.  A  Lecture  read, 
Dec.  1865,  before  the  American  Geographical  and  Statistical 
Society,  N.  Y.,  and  before  the  American  Association  for  the 

Advancement  of  Social  Science,  Boston . 25 

THE  SLAVE-TRADE,  DOMESTIC  AND  FOREIGN: 
Why  it  Exists,  and  How  it  may  be  Extinguished.  12mo. 

cloth . t . $1.50 

THE  WAY  TO  OUTDO  ENGLAND  WITHOUT  FIGHT¬ 
ING  HER.  LETTERS  TO  THE  HON.  SCHUYLER 
COLFAX,  Speaker  of  the  House  of  Representatives  United 
States,  on  “The  Paper  Question,”  “The  Farmer’s  Ques¬ 
tion,”  “  The  Iron  Question,”  “  The  Railroad  Question,”  and 
the  “  Currency  Question.”  8vo.,  paper . 75 

Campin.  A  Practical  Treatise  on  Mechan¬ 
ical  Engineering: 

Comprising  Metallurgy,  Moulding,  Casting,  Forging,  Tools, 
Workshop  Machinery,  Mechanical  Manipulation,  Manufac¬ 
ture  of  Steam-engines,  etc.,  etc.  With  an  Appendix  on  the 
Analysis  of  Iron  and  Iron  Ores.  By  Francis  Campin,  C.  E. 
To  which  are  added,  Observations  on  the  Construction  of 
Steam  Boilers  and  remarks  upon  Furnaces  used  for  Smoke 
Prevention;  with  a  Chapter  on  Explosions.  By  R.  Arm¬ 
strong,  C.  E.,  and  John  Bourne.  Rules  for  Calculating  the 
Change  Wheels  for  Screws  on  a  Turning  Lathe,  and  for  a 
Wheel-cutting  Machine.  By  J.  La  Nicca.  Management  of 
Steel,  including  Forging,  Hardening,  Tempering,  Annealing, 
Shrinking,  and  Expansion.  And  the  Case-hardening  of  Iron. 
By  G.  Ede.  8vo.  Illustrated  with  29  plates  and  100  wood 
engravings . . . $6.00 

Contents. — Introduction — On  Metallurgy;  On  Forging  Iron;  On  Moulding 
and  Casting;  On  Cutting  Tools;  On  Workshop  Machinery;  On  Manipulation  ; 
On  the  Pnysical  Basis  of  the  Steam-engine  ;  On  the  Principles  of  Mechanical 
Construction ;  On  the  General  Arrangement  of  the  Steam-engine ;  On  the 
General  Principles  of  Steam  Boilers  ;  Preliminary  considerations  on  the 
Applicability  of  various  kinds  of  Steam-engines  to  various  purposes ;  On 
the  details  of  Steam-engines ;  On  Pumps  and  Valves  ;  On  Steam  Boilers  ; 
On  Propellers  ;  On  various-  applications  of  Steam-power  and  Apparatus 
connected  therewith;  On  Pumping  Engines;  On  Rotative  Engines;  On 
Marine  Engines;  On  Locomotive  Engines;  On  Road  Locomotives;  On 
Steam  Fire  Engines ;  On  Boilers  generally,  and  a  Radical  Reform  in  those 

9 


PRACTICAL  AND  SCIENTIFIC  BOOKS, 


for  Marine  purposes  suggested ;  Smoke  Prevention  and  its  fallacies  ;  Re¬ 
marks  on  Smoke-burning,  by  John  Bourne  ;  Explosions :  an  investigation 
into  some  of  the  causes  producing  them,  and  into  the  deterioration  of  Boil¬ 
ers  generally ;  Rules  for  Calculating  the  Change  Wheels  for  Screws  on  a 
Turning  Lathe,  and  for  a  Wheel-cutting  Machine  ;  Explanation  of  the 
Methods  of  Calculating  Screw  Threads  ;  The  Management  of  Steel. 
Appendix. — The  Analysis  of  Iron  and  Iron  Ores. 

Geossab?. — Index. 

Capron  de  Dole.  Dussauce.  Blues  and  Car¬ 
mines  of  Indigo. 

A  Practical  Treatise  on  the  Fabrication  of  every  Commer¬ 
cial  Product  derived  from  Indigo.  By  Felicien  Capron  de 
Dole.  Translated,  with  important  additions,  by  Professor  H. 
Dussauce.  12mo . $2.50 

Clough.  The  Contractor’s  Manual  and  Build¬ 
er’s  Price-Book : 

Designed  to  elucidate  the  method  of  ascertaining,  correctly, 
the  Value  and  Quantity  of  every  description  jf  Work  and 
Materials,  used  in  the  Art  of  Building,  Iron  their  Prime  Cost 
in  any  part  of  the  United  States,  collected  from  extensive 
experience  and  observation  in  Building  and  Designing ;  to 
which  are  added  a  large  variety  of  Tables,  Memoranda,  etc., 
indispensable  to  all  engaged  or  concerned  in  erecting  buildings 
of  any  kind.  By  A.  B.  Clough,  Architect,  24mo.,  cloth. .  .75 

Colburn.  The  Locomotive  Engine: 

Including  a  Description  of  its  Structure,  Rules  for  Estima¬ 
ting  its  Capabilities,  and  Practical  Observations  on  its  Con¬ 
struction  and  Management.  By  Zerah  Colburn.  Illus¬ 
trated.  A  new  edition.  12mo . $1.25 

Daguerreotypist  and  Photographer’s  Com¬ 

panion. 

12mo.,  cloth . . . . $1.25 

Distiller.  (The  Complete  Practical). 

By  M.  Lafayette  Byrn,  M.  D.  With  Ulust’ns.  12mo - $1.50 

Duncan.  Practical  Surveyor’s  Guide. 

By  Andrew  Duncan.  Illustrated.  12mo.,  cloth . $1.25 

Dussauce.  Practical  Treatise  on  the  Fabri¬ 
cation  of  Matches,  Gun  Cotton,  and  Fulmi¬ 
nating  Powders. 

By  Professor  H.  Dussauce.  12mo . $3.00 

Contents. — Phosphorus — History  of  Phosphorus  ;  Physical  Properties  ; 
Chemical  Properties ;  Natural  State;  Preparation  of  White  Phosphorus; 
Amorphous  Phosphorus,  and  Bonoxide  of  Lead.  Matches^ Preparation  of 
10 


PUBLISHED  BY  HENRY  CAREY  BAIRD. 


Wooden  Matches  ;  Matches  inflammable  by  rubbing,  without  noise  ;  Com¬ 
mon  Lucifer  Matches;  Matches  without  Phosphorus;  Candle  Matches: 
Matches  with  Amorphous  Phosphorus ;  Matches  and  Rubbers  without 
Phosphorus.  Gun  Cotton — Properties  ;  Preparation  ;  Paper  Powder  ;  use  of 
Cotton  and  Paper  Powders  for  Fulminating  Primers,  etc. ;  Preparation  of 
Fulminating  Primers,  etc.,  etc. 

Dussauce.  A  New  and  Complete  Treatise  on 
the  Arts  of  Tanning,  Currying,  and  Leather 
Dressing: 

Comprising  all  the  Discoveries  and  Improvements  made  m 
France,  Great  Britain,  and  the  United  States.  Edited  from 
Notes  and  Documents  of  Messrs.  Sallerou,  Grouvelle,  Duval, 
Dessables,  Labarraque,  Payen,  Ren6,  De  Fontenelle,  Mala- 
peyre,  etc.,  etc.  By  Prof.  H.  Dussauce,  Chemist.  Illus¬ 
trated  by  212  wood  engravings.  8vo . $10.00 

Dussauce.  Treatise  on  the  Coloring  Matters 
Derived  from  Coal  Tar : 

Their  Practical  Application  in  Dyeing  Cotton,  Wool,  and 
Silk ;  the  Principles  of  the  Art  of  Dyeing  and  of  the  Dis¬ 
tillation  of  Coal  Tar,  with  a  Description  of  the  most  Import¬ 
ant  New  Dyes  now  in  use.  By  Professor  H.  Dussauce, 
Chemist.  12mo.... . $2.50 

Dyer  and  Color-maker’s  Companion: 

Containing  upwards  of  two  hundred  Receipts  for  making 
Colors,  on  the  most  approved  principles,  for  all  the  various 
styles  and  fabrics  now  in  existence  ;  with  the  Scouring  Pro- 
•  cess,  and  plain  Directions  for  Preparing,  Washing-off,  and 
Finishing  the  Goods.  In  one  vol.,  12mo . $1.25 

Easton.  A  Practical  Treatise  on  Street  or 
Horse-power  Railways : 

Their  Location,  Construction,  and  Management ;  with  gen¬ 
eral  Plans  and  Rules  for  their  Organization  and  Operation ; 
together  with  Examinations  as  to  their  Comparative  Advan¬ 
tages  over  the  Omnibus  System,  and  Inquiries  as  to  their 
Value  for  Investment;  including  Copies  of  Municipal  Ordi¬ 
nances  relating  thereto.  By  Alexander  Easton,  C.  E.  Il¬ 
lustrated  by  23  plates.  8vo.  cloth . $2.00 

Engineer’s  Handy-Book: 

Containing  a  Series  of  Useful  Calculations  for  Engineers, 
Tool-makers,  Millwrights,  Draughtsmen,  Foremen,  and  Me¬ 
chanics  generally.  ( In  Press.) 

Erni.  Coal  Oil  and  Petroleum : 

Their  Origin,  History,  Geology,  and  Chemistry ;  with  a  view 
of  their  importance  in  their  bearing  on  National  Industry , 

11 


4k 

PRACTICAL  AID  SCIENTIFIC  BOOKS, 


By  Dr.  Henri  Erni,  Chief  Chemist,  Department  of  Agricul* 
ture.  12mo . . . * . $2.50 

Erni.  The  Theoretical  and  Practical  Chem¬ 
istry  of  Fermentation: 

Comprising  the  Chemistry  of  Wine,  Beier,  Distilling  of  Li¬ 
quors  ;  with  the  practical  methods  of  their  Chemical  exam¬ 
ination,  preservation,  and  improvement — such  as  Gallizing  of 
Wines.  With  an  Appendix,  containing  well-tested  Practical 
Eules  and  Eeceipts  for  the  manufacture,  etc.,  of  all  kinds  of 
Alcoholic  Liquors.  By  Henri  Erni,  Chief  Chemist,  Depart¬ 
ment  of  Agriculture.  [In  Press.) 

Fairbairn.  Principles  of  Mechanism  and 
Machinery  of  Transmission : 

Comprising  the  Principles  of  Mechanism,  Whee^  and  Pul- 
lies,  Strength  and  Proportions  of  Shafts,  Couplings  for  Shafts, 
and  Engaging  and  Disengaging  Gear.  By  Wm.  Fairbairn, 
Esq.,  C.E.,  LL.D.,  F.R.S.,  F.G.S.,  Corresponding  Member  of 
the  National  Institute  of  France,  and  of  the  Royal  Academy 
of  Turin ;  Chevalier  of  the  Legion  of  Honor,  e*tc.,  etc.  Illus¬ 
trated  by  over  150  wood  cuts . .  $2.50 

Contents.— General  Views,  Link  Work,  Wrapping  Connectors, 
Wheel-work:  General  Views  Relating  to  Machines  ;  Elementary  Forms 
of  Mechanism;  Link-work;  Wrapping  Connectors;  Wheel-work  producing 
Motion  by  rolling  Contact  ;  Sliding  Pieces  producing  Motion  by  sliding 
Contact ;  On  Wheels  and  Pullies  ;  Wrapping  Connectors;  Toothed  Wheels  ; 
Spur  Gearing  ;  Pitch  of  Wheels  ;  Teeth  of  Wheels  ;  Bevel  Wheels  ;  Skew 
Bevels  ;  The  Worm  and  Wheel ;  Strength  of  the  Teeth  of  Wheels  ;  On  the 
Strength  and  Proportions  of  Shafts  ;  Material  of  which  Shafting  is  • 
Constructed  ;  Transverse  Strain  ;  Torsion  ;  Velocity  of  Shafts  ;  On  Journals  ; 
Friction  ;  Lubrication  ;  On  Couplings  for  Shafts  and  Engaging  and 
Disengaging  Gear  :  Couplings ;  Disengaging  and  Re-engaging  Gear ; 
Hangers  ;  Plumber  Blocks,  etc.,  for  carrying  Shafting  ;  Main  Shafts. 

Fairbairn.  Useful  Information  for  Engi¬ 
neers. 

By  William  Fairbairn.  ( In  Press.) 

Kobell.  Erni.  Mineralogy  Simplified : 

A  short  method  of  Determining  and  Classifying  Minerals,  by 
means  of  simple  Chemical  Experiments  in  the  Wet  Way. 
Translated  from  the  last  German  edition  of  F.  Yon  Kobell, 
with  additions,  by  Henri  Erni,  M.  D.,  Chief  Chemist,  Depart- 
partment  of  Agriculture,  author  of  “  Coal  Oil  and  Petro¬ 
leum.”  In  one  volume,  i2mo . $2.50 

Gilbart.  A  Practical  Treatise  on  Banking. 

By  James  William  Gilhart,  F.  R.  S.  A  new  enlarged  and 
improved  edition.  Edited  by  J.  Smith  Homans,  editor  of 
“Banker’s  Magazine.”  To  which  is  added  “Money,”  by 

H.  C.  Carey.  8vo . $3.50 

12 


PUBLISHED  BY  HENRY  CAREY  BAIRD. 


Gregory’s  Mathematics  for  Practical  Men ; 

Adapted  to  fhe  Pursuits  of  Surveyors,  Architects,  Mechan¬ 
ics,  and  Civil  Engineers.  8vo.,  plates,  cloth . $2.50 


Gas  and  Ventilation. 

A  Practical  Treatise  on  Gas  and  Yentilation.  By  E.  E.  Per* 
kins.  12mo.,  cloth . . . $1.25 

Griswold.  Railroad  Engineer’s  Pocket  Com¬ 
panion  for  the  Field. 

By  W.  Griswold.  12mo.,  tucks . . . .$1.25 

Hartmann.  The  Practical  Iron  Manufactu¬ 
rer’s  Vade-mecum. 

From,  the  German  of  Dr.  Carl  Hartmann.  Illustrated.  (In 
Press.) 

Hay.  The  Interior  Decorator: 

The  Laws  of  Harmonious  Coloring  adapted  to  Interior.  De¬ 
corations  :  with  a  Practical  Treatise  on  House-Painting.  By 
D.  R.  Hay,  House-Painter  and  Decorater.  Illustrated  by  a 
Diagram  of  the  Primary,  Secondary,  and  Tertiary  Colors. 
12mo.  (In  Press.) 

Inventor’s  Guide: 

Patent  Office  and  Patent  Laws ;  or,  a  Guide  to  Inventors, 
and  a  Book  of  Reference  for  Judges,  Lawyers,  Magistrates, 
and  others.  By  J.  G.  Moore.  12mo.,  cloth . $1.25 

Jervis.  Railway  Property. 

A  Treatise  on  the  Construction  and  Management  of  Rail¬ 
ways  ;  designed  to  afford  useful  knowledge,  in  the  popular 
style,  to  the  holders  of  this  class  of  property;  as  well  as 
Railway  Managers,  Officers,  and  Agents.  By  John  B.  Jervis, 
late  Chief  Engineer  of  the  Hudson  River  Railroad,  Croton 
Aqueduct,  etc.  One  volume,  12mo.,  cloth . $2.00 

Contents.— Preface— Introduction.  Construction.  —  Introductory :  Land 
and  Land  Damages ;  Location  of  Line ;  Method  of  Business ;  Grading ; 
Bridges  and  Culverts  ;  Road  Crossings  ;  Ballasting  Track  ;  Cross  Sleepers  : 
Chairs  and  Spikes  ;  Rails  ;  Station  Buildings  ;  Locomotives,  Coaches  and 
Cars.  Operating. — Introductory :  Freight ;  Passengers  ;  Engine  Drivers 
Repairs  to  Track  ;  Repairs  of  Machinery  ;  Civil  Engineer  ;  Superintendent ; 
Supplies  of  Material  ;  Receipts ;  Disbursements ;  Statistics  ;  Running 
Trains  ;  Competition  ;  Financial  Management ;  General  Remarks. 

Johnson.  A  Report  to  the  Navy  Department 
of  the  United  States  on  American  Coals, 

Applicable  to  Steam  Navigation,  and  to  other  purposes. 
By  Walter  R.  Johnson.  With  numerous  illustrations. 
607  pp.  8vo.,  half  morocco . $6.00 


13 


PRACTICAL  AND  SCIENTIFIC  BOOKS, 


Johnson.  The  Coal  Trade  of  British  America : 

With  Researches  on  the  Characters  and  Practical  Values  of 
American  and  Foreign  Coals.  By  Walter  R.  Johnson,  Civil 
and  Mining  Engineer  and  Chemist.  8vo . $2.00 

Johnston.  Instructions  for  the  Analysis  of 
Soils,  Limestones,  and  Manures. 

By  J.  F.  W.  Johnston.  12mo . . . .  38 

Kentish.  A  Treatise  on  a  Box  of  Instru¬ 
ments, 

And  the  Slide  Rule  ;  with  the  Theory  of  Trigonometry  and 
Logarithms,  including  Practical  Geometry,  Surveying,  Meas¬ 
uring  of  Timber,  Cask  and  Malt  Gauging,  Heights  attid  Dis¬ 
tances.  By  Thomas  Kentish.  In  one  volume,  12mo..$1.25 

Leroux.  A  Practical  Treatise  on  Wools  and 
Worsteds : 

By  Charles  Leroux,  Mechanical  Engineer,  and  Superinten¬ 
dent  of  a  Spinning  Mill.  Illustrated  by  12  large  plates  and 
34  engravings.  In  Press. 

Contents. — Part  I.  Practical  Mechanics,  with  Formulae  and  Calculations 
applicable  to  Spinning.  Part  II.  Spinning  of  Combed,  and  Combed  and 
Carded  Wools  on  the  Mule.  Part  III.  French  and  English  Spinning.  Part 
IV.  Carded  Wool. 

Larkin.  The  Practical  Brass  and  Iron  Found¬ 
er’s  Guide: 

A  Concise  Treatise  on  Brass  Founding,  Moulding,  the  Metals 
and  their  Alloys,  etc. :  to  which  are  added  Recent  Improve¬ 
ments  in  the  Manufacture  of  Iron,  Steel  by  the  Bessemer 
Process,  etc.,  etc.  By  James  Larkin,  late  Conductor  of  the 
Brass  Foundry  Department  in  Reaney,  Neafie  &  Co.’s  Penn 
Works,  Philadelphia.  Fifth  edition,  revised,  with  Extensive 
Additions.  In  one  volume,  12mo . $2.25 

Lieber.  Assayer’s  Guide; 

Or,  Practical  Directions  to  Assayers,  Miners,  and  Smelters. 
By  Oscar  M.  Lieber.  12mo.,  cloth . $1.25 

Love.  The  Art  of  Dyeing,  Cleaning,  Scour¬ 
ing,  and  Finishing, 

On  the  Most  Approved  English  and  French  Methods  :  being 
Practical  Instructions  in  Dyeing  Silks,  Woollens,  and  Cottons, 
Feathers,  Chips,  Straw,  etc.;  Scouring  and  Cleaning  Bed 
and  Window  Curtains,  Carpets,  Rugs,  etc. ;  French  and  Eng¬ 
lish  Cleaning,  any  Color  or  Fabric  of  Silk,  Satin,  or  Damask. 
By  Thomas  Love,  a  working  Dyer  and  Scourer.  In  I  vol., 

12mo. . : . P.00 

14 


PUBLISHED  BY  HENRY  CAREY  BAIRD. 


Lowig.  Principles  of  Organic  and  Physiolo¬ 
gical  Chemistry. 

By  Dr.  Carl  Lowig.  Translated  by  Daniel  Breed,  M.  D. 
8vo.,  sheep . . . . . A . $3.50 

Main  and  Brown.  The  Marine  Steam-engine. 

By  Thomas  J.  Main,  Professor  of  Mathematics,  Royal  Naval 
College,  and  Thomas  Brown,  Chief  Engineer,  R.  N.  Illus¬ 
trated  by  engravings  and  wood-cuts.  8vo.,  cloth . $5.00 

gg"  The  text  book  of  the  United  States  Naval  Academy. 

Contents.— Introductory  Chapter— The  Boiler  ;  The  Engine ;  Getting  up 
the  Steam  ;  Duties  to  Machinery  when  under  Steam  ;  Duties  to  Machinery 
during  an  Action  or  after  an  Accident ;  Duties  to  Engine,  etc.,  on  arriving 
in  Harbor.  Miscellaneous.  Appendix. 

Main  and  Brown.  Questions  on  Subjects  Con¬ 
nected  with  the  Marine  Steam-engine, 

And  Examination  Papers ;  with  hints  for  their  Solution. 
By  Thomas  J.  Main,  Professor  of  Mathematics,  Royal 
Naval  College,  and  Thomas  Brown,  Chief  Engineer,  R.  N. 
12mo.,  cloth . . . $1.50 

Main  and  Brown.  The  Indicator  and  Dyna¬ 
mometer, 

With  their  Practical  Applications  to  the  Steam-engine 
By  Thomas  J.  Main  and  Thomas  Brown.  With  Illus¬ 
trations . $1.50 

Makins.  A  Manual  of  Metallurgy, 

More  particularly  of  the  Precious  Metals,  including  the 
Methods  of  Assaying  them.  Illustrated  by  upwards  of  50 
engravings.  By  George  Hogarth  Makins,  M.  R.  C.  S.,  F.  C.  S., 
one  of  the  Assayers  to  the  Bank  of  England ;  Assayer  to 
the  Anglo-Mexican  Mints ;  and  Lecturer  upon  Metallurgy 
at  thg  Dental  Hospital,  London.  In  one  vol.,  12mo..  .$3.50 

Contents.— General  Properties  of  the  Metals  ;  General  View  of  the  Com¬ 
bining  Properties  of  the  Metals ;  Combination  of  Metals  with  the  Non- 
Metallic  Elements ;  Of  Metallic  Salts  ;  Of  Heating  Apparatus,  Furnaces, 
etc. ;  Of  Fuels  Applicable  to  Metallurgic  Operations  ;  Metals  of  the  First 
Class ;  Metals  of  the  Second  Class ;  The  Principles  of  Electro-Metal¬ 
lurgy. 

Marble  Worker’s  Manual: 

Containing  Practical  Information  respecting  Marbles  in 
general,  their  Cutting,  Working,  and  Polishing  ;  Veneering, 
etc.,  etc.  12mo.,  cloth . . . $1.50 


15 


FBACTICAL  AFD  SCIENTIFIC  BOOKS, 


Molesworth.  Pocket-book  of  Useful  For¬ 
mula)  and  Memoranda  for  Civil  and  Me¬ 
chanical  Engineers. 

By  Guilforcl  L.  Molesworth,  Member  of  the  Institution  of 
Civil  Engineers,  Chief  Besident  Engineer  of  the  Ceylon 
Bail  way.  From  the  Tenth  London  edition . $£.00 

Contents. — Civil  Engineering— Surveying,  Levelling,  Setting  Out,  etc. ; 
Earthwork,  Brickwork,  Masonry,  Arches,  etc. ;  Beams,  Girders,  Bridges, 
etc. ;  Roofs,  Floors,  Columns,  Walls,  etc. ;  Railways,  Roads,  Canals,  Riv¬ 
ers,  Docks,  etc. ;  Water-works,  Sewers,  Gas-works,  Drainage,  etc. ;  Warm¬ 
ing,  Ventilation,  Light,  Sound,  Heat,  etc. 

Mechanical  Engineering. — Gravity,  Mechanical  Centres  and  Powers  ;  Mill- 
work,  Teeth  of  Wheels,  Shafting,  Belting,  etc. ;  Alloys,  Solders,  and  Work¬ 
shop  Recipes  ;  Steam  Boilers,  and  Steam-engines  ;  Water-wheels,  Turbines, 
etc.,  and  Windmills  ;  Paddle  and  Screw  Steamers  ;  Miscellaneous  Machinery. 

Weights  and  Measures,  English  and  Foreign  ;  Logarithms  of  Numbers  ; 
Triangles,  Trigonometry,  and  Tables  of  Sines,  etc.  ;  Properties  of  Ellipse,  Pa¬ 
rabola,  Circle,  etc. ;  Mensuration  of  Surfaces  and  Solids  ;  Tables  of  Areas, 
and  Circumferences  of  Circles ;  Weights  and  Properties  of  Materials ; 
Squares,  Cubes,  Powers,  Roots,  and  Reciprocals  of  Numbers ;  Engineer¬ 
ing  Memoranda  and  Tables  ;  Supplement  by  J.  T.  Hurst,  C.  E.,  contain¬ 
ing  Additional  Engineering  Memoranda  and  Tables ;  Tables  by  Lewis 
Oirick,  C.  E. 

Miles.  A  Plain  Treatise  on  Horse-shoeing. 

With  illustrations.  By  William  Miles,  author  of  the  “  Horse’s 
Foot” . $l!t)0 

Morfit.  A  Treatise  on  Chemistry, 

Applied  to  the  Manufacture  of  Soap  and  Candles :  being  a 
Thorough  Exposition  in  all  their  Minutiae  of  the  Principles 
and  Practice  of  the  Trade,  based  upon  the  most  recent  Dis¬ 
coveries  in  Science  and  Art.  By  Campbell  Morfit,  Professor 
of  Analytical  and  Applied  Chemistry  in  the  University 
of  Maryland.  A  new  and  improved  edition.  Illustrated 
with  260  engravings  on  wood.  Complete  in  1  volume,  large 
8vo.  . . . . . .  $20.00 

Mortimer.  The  Pyrotechnist’s  Companion : 

By  G.  W.  Mortimer.  Illustrated.  12mo.,  cloth. ..  #.  $1.25 

Napier.  Manual  of  Electro-Metallurgy: 

Including  the  Application  of  the  Art  to  Manufacturing 
Processes.  By  James  Napier.  From  the  second  London 
edition,  revised  and  enlarged.  Illustrated  by  engravings. 


In  one  volume,  12mo . $1.50 

Napier.  Chemistry  Applied  to  Dyeing. 

By  James  Napier,  F.  C.  S.  Illustrated.  12mo . $3.00 

16 


PUBLISHED  BY  HENEY  CAREY  BAIRD. 


Nicholson.  Bookbinding:  A  Manual  of  the 
Art  of  Bookbinding : 

Containing  full  Instructions  in  the  different  Branches  of 
Forwarding,  Gilding,  and  Finishing.  Also,  the  Art  of  Mar¬ 
bling  Book-edges  and  Paper.  By  James  B.  Nicholson.  Il¬ 
lustrated.  12mo.,  cloth  . . $2.23 

Contents.— Sketch  of  the  Progress  of  Bookbinding,  Sheet-work,  Forward¬ 
ing  the  Edges,  Marbling,  Gilding  the  Edges,  Covering,  Half  Binding,  Blank 
Binding,  Boarding,  Cloth-work,  Ornamental  Art,  Finishing,  Taste  and  De¬ 
sign,  Styles,-  Gilding,  Illuminated  Binding,  Blind  Tooling,  Antique,  Color¬ 
ing,  Marbling,  Uniform  Colors,  Gold  Marbling,  Landscapes,  etc. ;  Inlaid  Or¬ 
naments,  Harmony  of  Colors,  Pasting  Down,  etc.  ;  Stamp  or  Press-work, 
Restoring  the  Bindings  of  Old  Books,  Supplying  imperfections  in  Old  Books, 
-lints  to  Book  Collectors,  Technical  Lessons. 

Morris.  A  Hand-book  for  Locomotive  En¬ 
gineers  and  Machinists. 

By  Septimus  Norris,  0.  E.  New  edition,  illustrated,  12mo., 
cloth  . . . . ....$2.00 

Nystrom.  On  Technological  Education  and 
the  Construction  of  Ships  and  Screw  Pro¬ 
pellers  for  Naval  and  Marine  Engineers. 

By  John  W.  Nystrom,  late  Acting  Chief  Engineer  U.  S.  N. 
Second  edition,  revised  with  additional  matter.  Illustrated 
by  7  engravings.  12mo . . . . . $2.50 

Contents. — On  Technological  Education  ;  The  knowledge  of  Steam  En¬ 
gineering  behind  the  knowledge  of  Science  ;  Failure  of  Steamers  for  a  want 
of  Applied  Science ;  Fresh  water  Condensers,  and  combustion  of  Fuel  ; 
Knowledge  of  Steamship  Performance ;  Expansion  experiments  made  by 
the  Navy  Department ;  Natural  effect  of  Steam  or  maximum  work  per  unit 
of  Heat ;  Natural  effect  of  Steam-engines  ;  Nystrom’s  Pocket-book  ;  Reform 
wanted  in  Scientific  Books ;  America  has  taken  the  lead  in  Popular  Edu¬ 
cation  ;  Technological  Institutions  wanted  5  The  National  Academy  of 
Sciences ;  Object  of  Technological  Institutions  ;  Steam-engineering  and 
Ship-building ;  Necessity  of  complete  Drawings  before  the  building  of 
Steamers  is  commenced  ;  America  has  taken  the  lead  in  the  new  Naval 
Tactics ;  The  Naval  Academy,  at  Annapolis,  not  proper  for  a  School  of 
Steam-engineering;  Want  of  applied  Science  in  our  Workshops  ;  Locomo¬ 
tive  Engineering ;  Communication  to  the  Secretary  of  the  Navy  on  the 
Science  Of  Ship-building ;  Shipbuilders  consider  their  Art  a  Craft ;  Ship¬ 
builders’  jealousy;  Ship-building  developed  to  the  condition  of  a  Science; 
Memorandum ;  Chief  Engineer  Isherwood  does  not  approve  tl^e  Parabolic 
Construction  of  Ships  ;  On  the  Parabolic  Construction  of  Ships  ;  Applica¬ 
tion  of  the  Parabolic  Construction  of  Ships  ;  Recording  Formulas  ;  Record¬ 
ing  Tables  ;  The  labor  of  calculating  the  Ship-building  Tables  ;  Mr.  W.  L. 
Hanscoai,  Naval  Constructor,  on  the  Parabolic  Method ;  Mr.  J.  Vaughan 
Merrick  on  the  Parabolic  Construction ;  Resignation,  by  the  Author,  as 
Acting  Chief  Engineer  in  the  Navy  ;  Memorandum ;  The  Science  of  Dyna¬ 
mics  in  a  confused  condition ;  Illustrations  required  in  Dynamics ;  Mr. 
Isherwood  declines  having  the  subject  of  Dynamics  cleared  up  ;  The  sub¬ 
ject  of  Dynamics  submitted  to  the  National  Academy  of  Sciences  ;  On  the 
elements  of  Dynamics  ;  force,  power,  and  work,  defined  ;  Work ,  a  trinity  ol 
Physical  Elements ;  Discussion  with  Naval  Engineers  on  the  subject  ol 
Dynamics  ;  Questions  in  Dynamics  submitted  to  the  Academy  of  Sciences  • 
Vis-viva;  Unit  for  Power  ;  Unit  for  Work;  Navy  Departmen  attciApti»q 

17 


PRACTICAL  AND  SCIENTIFIC  BOOKS. 


to  reorganize  the  Corps  of  Engineers  ;  Washington  Navy  Yard  ;  Engineers 
in  the  Navy  Department ;  Captain  Fox  on  Engineering  and  the  Construe* 
tion  of  Ships ;  Secrecy  respecting  Ships’  Drawings  ;  Steam  Boiler  Explo¬ 
sions;  Review  of  Screw  Propellers;  To  Construct  a  Plain  Screw;  Pro¬ 
peller  with  a  Compound  Expanding  Pitch ;  Propeller  as  Constructed  by 
Chief  Engineer  Isherwood  ;  Propeller  as  Constructed  from  Mr.  Isherwood’s 
Drawings;  Centripetal  Propeller;  Centripetal  Propeller  with  Compound 
Expanding  Pitch  ;  The  Office  of  the  Coast  Survey  an  example  of  what 
the  Bureau  of  Steam-engineering  should  be ;  The  Engineer-in-Chief  of  the 
Navy  a  Grand  Admiral ;  Constructions  ought  not  to  be  made  in  the  Navy 
Department ;  The  office  of  the  Coast  Survey  and  the  Light-house  Board  na¬ 
turally  belong  to  the  Navy. 

O’Neill.  Chemistry  of  Calico  Printing,  Dye¬ 
ing,  and  Bleaching: 

Including  Silken,  Woollen,  and  Mixed  Goods;  Practical  and 
Theoretical.  By  Charles  O’Neill.  ( In  Press.) 

O’Neill.  A  Dictionary  of  Calico  Printing  and 

Dyeing. 

By  Charles  O’Neill.  ( In  Press.) 

Painter,  Gilder,  and  Yarnisher’s  Compan¬ 
ion. 

Containing  Rules  and  Regulations  in  every  thing  relating  to 
the  Arts  of  Painting,  Gilding,  Varnishing,  and  Glass  Stain¬ 
ing  ;  numerous  useful  and  valuable  Receipts  ;  Tests  for  the 
detection  of  Adulterations  in  Oils,  Colors,  etc. ;  and  a  state¬ 
ment  of  the  Diseases  and  Accidents  to  which  Painters,  Gild¬ 
ers  and  Yarmshers  are  peculiarly  liable,  with  the  simplest 
*  and  best  methods  of  Prevention  and  Remedy ;  with  directions 
for  Graining,  Marbling,  Sign  Writing  and  Gilding  on  Glass. 
Tenth  edition.  To  which  are  added  complete  Instructions 
for  Coach  Painting  and  Varnishing.  12mo,  cloth . $1.50 

Pallett.  The  Miller’s,  Millwright’s,  and  En¬ 
gineer’s  Guide. 

By  Henry  Pallett.  Illustrated.  In  1  vol.,  12mo . $3.00 

Contents. — Explanation  of  Characters  used ;  Definitions  of  Words  used 
in  this  Work;  United  States  Weights  and  Measures;  Decimal  Fractions; 
On  the  Selection  of  Mill-stones ;  On  the  Dressing  of  New  Mill-stones — mak¬ 
ing  their  Faces  Straight,  and  ready  for  putting  in  the  Furrows ;  Furrows  ; 
the  manner  of  Laying  them  out ;  their  Draft,  and  cutting  them  in ;  Direc¬ 
tions  for  laying  off*  and  cutting  the  Holes  for  the  Balance  Ryne  and  Driver ; 
Directions  for  putting  in  the  Balance  Ryne  and  the  Boxes  for  the  Driver, 
and  making  them  fast;  Of  Setting  the  Bed  Stone,  and  fastening  the  Bush 
therein ;  Directions  how  to  Bridge  or  Tram  the  Spindle ;  Instructions  for 
Grinding  off  the  Lumps  of  New  Stones,  Turning  the  Back  of  the  Running 
Stone,  Rounding  the  Eye  and  Balancing  the  Stone;  Directions  for  Dressing 
and  Sharpening  Mill-stones  when  they  become  dull ;  Respecting  the  Irons 
of  the  Mill ;  Description  of  Plate  4,  Showing  the  Principle  upon  which  the 
Mill-stones  work;  How  to  Fit  a  New  Back  on  a  Stone  that  has  been  Run¬ 
ning;  Of  the  Elevator,  Conveyor,  and  Hopper  Boy;  Of  Bolting  Reels  and 
Cloths,  with  Directions  for  Bolting  and  Inspecting  Flour ;  Directions  for 
Cleaning  Wheat ;  Instructions  for  Grinding  Wheat;  Directions  for  Grind¬ 
ing  Wheat  with  Garlic  amongst  it,  and  for  Dressing  the  Stones  suitable 

IS 


PUBLISHED  BY  HENRY  CAREY  BAIRD. 


thereto ;  Directions  how  to  put  the  Stones  in  Order  for  Grinding  Wheat 
that  has  Garlic  amongst  it;  Directions  for  Grinding  Middlings,  and  how  to 
Prevent  the  Stones  from  Choking,  so  as  to  make  the  most  of  them  ;.  Reels 
for  Bolting  the  Middlings  ;  Instructions  for  a  small  Mill,  Grinding  different 
kinds  of  Grain ;  Of  the  Manner  of  Packing  Flour ;  Table  Showing  the  num¬ 
ber  of  Pounds  which  constitute  a  Bushel,  as  established  by  Law  in  the 
States  therein  named ;  The  Duty  of  the  Miller;  Pearl  Barley  or  Pot  Barley; 
The  Art  of  Distillation;  Of  the  Importance  of  Draughting  and  Planning 
Mills  :  Cogs  :  the  best  time  for  Seasoning  and  Cutting  them;  Ihe  Framing 
of  Mill- work ;  Windmills;  A  Table  of  the  Velocity  of  Wind;  Instructions 
for  Baking;  Receipt  for  making  Babbitt  Metal,  etc.;  Cement;  Solders; 
Table  Showing  the  Product  of  a  Bushel  of  Wheat  of  different  Weights  and 
Qualities,  as  ascertained  from  Experiments  in  Grinding  Parcels ;  Of  Saw¬ 
mills  and  their  Management;  The  Circular  Saw ;  Rules  for  Calculating  the 
Speed  the  Stones  and  other  pieces  or  parts  of  the  Machinery  run  at;  To  find 
the  Quantity,  in  Bushels,  a  Hopper  will  Contain;  Table  of  Dry  Measure; 
Spouts;  the  Necessity  of  making  them  Large;  To  lay  off  any  required 
Angle:  Of  Masonry;  of  Artificer’s  Work;  Bricklayer’s  Work;  Bricks  and 
Lathes — Dimensions ;  Timber  Measure';  Table — Diameters  in  inches  of  Saw 
Logs  reduced  to  inch  board  measure;  Of  the  Wedge;  Of  Pumps;  The 
Screw;  Table  showing  the  power  of  Man  or  Horse  as  applied  to  Machinery; 
Measure  of  Solidity ;  Rules  for  calculating  Liquids ;  A  Table  showing  the 
Capacity  of  Cisterns,  Wells,  etc.,  in  Ale  Gallons  and  Hogsheads,  in  propor¬ 
tion  to  their  Diameters  and  Depths ;  Steel — Of  the  various  degrees  of  Heat 
required  in  the  Manufacture  of  Steel;  Composition  for  Welding  Cast  Steel ; 
Directions  for  Making  and  Sharpening  Mill  Picks;  A  Composition  for  Tem¬ 
pering  Cast  Steel  Mill  Picks ;  Governors  for  Flouring  Mills ;  The  Governor 
or  Regulator;  The  Pulley;  Of  the  Velocity  of  Wheels,  Pulleys,  Drums,  etc.; 
On  Friction;  Belting  Friction ;  Of  the  Strength  of  different  Bodies;  Falling 
Bodies ;  Of  the  different  Gearings  for  propelling  Machinery ;  The  Crown  or 
Face  Gearing ;  On  matching  Wheels  to  make  the  Cogs  wear  even  ;  On  Steam 
and  the  Steam-engine ;  Of  Engines — their  Management,  etc.;  Prevention  of 
Incrustation  in  Steam  Boilers;  Double  Engines ;  The  Fly-wheel;  Table  of 
Circumferences  and  Areas  of  Circles,  in  Feet,  suitable  for  Fly-wheels,  etc.; 
To  calculate  the  effects  of  a  Lever  and  Weight  upon  the  Safety-valve  of  a 
Steam  Boiler,  etc. ;  Of  the  Slide  Valve ;  Boilers;  Chimneys;  Explosion  of 
Boilers;  On  the  Construction  of  Mill-dams ;  Rock  Dam;  Frame  Dams  ;  Brush 
or  Log  Dam;  Gates;  Description  of  Water-wheels  ;  Of  Non-elasticity  and 
Fluidity  in  Impinging  Bodies ;  Motion  of  Overshot  Wheels  ;  The  Breast 
Wheel ;  Overshot  or  Breast  Wheels ;  Table  of  the  number  of  inches  of  water 
necessary  to  drive  one  run  of  Stones,  with  all  the  requisite  Machinery  for 
Grist  and  Saw-mills,  under  heads  of  water  from  four  to  thirty  feet ;  Table 
containing  the  weight  of  columns  of  water,  each  one  foot  in  length,  and 
of  various  diameters;  The  Undershot  Wheel :  Tub  Wheels;  The  Flutter 
Wheel ;  The  Laws  of  Motion  and  Rest ;  Power  of  Gravity,  Percussion,  or 
Impulse,  with  the  Reaction  Attachment;  Table  of  the  velocities  of  the 
Combination  Reaction  Water-wheel  per  minute,  from  heads  of  from  four 
to  thirty  feet ;  Tables  to  reckon  the  Price  of  Wheat  from  Thirty  Cents  to 
Two  Dollars  per  Bushel. 

Pradal,  Malepeyre  and  Dussauce.  A  Com¬ 
plete  Treatise  on  Perfumery: 

Containing  Notices  of  the  Raw  Material  used  in  the  Art, 
and  the  best  Formulae.  According  to  the  most  approved 
methods  followed  in  France,  England,  and  the  United  States. 
13y  M.  P.  Pradal,  Perfumer  Chemist,  and  M.  F.  Malepeyre. 
Translated  from  the  French,  with  extensive  additions,  by 
Professor  H.  Dussauce.  8vo . $7.50 

Contents. — Nature  of  the  Trade  of  the  Perfumer  ;  Raw  Material ;  Po¬ 
mades  ;  Almond  Otis  ;  Perfumed "  Oils,  called  Huile  Antique ;  Powders 
Cosmetic  Preparation  for  the  Lips  and  Skin ;  Almond  Pastes  ;  Cosmetio 
Gloves  Paints  ;  Dentifrices  ;  Volatile  Oils ;  Aromatic  Waters  ;  Spirituous 

19 


PRACTICAL  AND  SCIENTIFIC  BOOKS, 


Odors  ;  Colors  ;  Infusions  ;  Tinctures  ;  Spirits  ;  Aromatic  Alcohols  ;  Fuming 
Pastils  ;  Cloves  ;  Sachets  ;  Cosmetics  ;  Cassolettes ;  Toilet  Vinegars  ;  Phar¬ 
maceutical  Preparations  made  by  the  Perfumer  ;  Toilet  Soaps ;  Various 
Substances  and  Processes  belonging  to  the  Perfumer’s  Trade. 

Proteanx.  Practical  Guide  for  the  Manufac¬ 
ture  of  Paper  and  Boards. 

By  A.  Proteaux,  Civil  Engineer,  Graduate  of  the  School  of 
Arts  and  M  anufactures,  and  Director  of  Thiers’  Paper-mill, 
Puy-de-D6me.  With  additions,  by  L.  S.  Le  Normand. 
Translated  from  the  French  with  Notes,  by  Horatio  Paine, 
A.  B.,  M.  D.  To  which  is  added  a  Chapter  on  the  Manufac¬ 
ture  of  Paper  from  Wood  in  the  United  States,  by  Henry 
T.  Brown,  of  the  “  American  Artisan.”  Illustrated  by  six 
plates,  containing  Drawings  of  Raw  Materials,  Machinery, 
Plans  of  Paper-mills,  etc.,  etc.  8vo . $5.00 

Contents. — Chapt.  I.  A  Glance  at  the  History  of  Paper-making.  Chapt.  II. 
Raw  Materials— Rags.  Chapt.  III.  Manufacture— Sorting  and  Cutting  ;  Dust¬ 
ing  ;  Washing  and  Boiling;  Reduction  to  Half-stuff;  Drainage;  Bleaching; 
Composition  of  the  Pulp  ;  Refining  or  Beating ;  Sizing ;  Coloring  Matters ; 
The  Work  of  the  Paper-machine  ;  Finishing.  Chapt.  IV.  Manufacture  of  Paper 
from  the  Vat,  or  by  Hand — Manufacture  of  Paper  by  hand ;  Sizing ;  Finishing ; 
Manufacture  of  Bank-note  Paper,  and  Water-mark  Paper  in  General ;  Com¬ 
parison  between  Machine  and  Hand-made  Papers  ;  Classification  of  Paper  . 
Chapt.  V.  Further  Remarks  on  Sizing — Of  the  Sizing-room  ;  Method  of  Ex¬ 
tracting  Galatine  ;  Operation  of  Sizing  ;  Drying  after  Sizing  :  the  Dutch 
method  preferable  to  the  French  ;  Some  important  Observations  upon  Sizing  ; 
Appendix  upon  Sizing  ;  Theories  of  Sizing  ;  Sizing  in  the  Pulp  ;  M.  Canson’s 
method  of  Sizing  in  the  Pulp  ;  Comparison  of  the  Two  methods.  Chapt.  VI. 
Different  Substances  Suitable  for  Making  Paper — Straw  Paper  ;  Wood  Paper. 
Chapt.  VII.  Chemical  Analysis  of  Materials  employed  in  Paper-making — 
The  Waters;  Allcalimetrical  Test ;  Examination  of  Limes ;  Chlorometric 
Tests  ;  Examination  of  Manganese  ;  Chlorometric  Degrees  of  Samples  of 
Manganese  ;  Antichlorine  ;  Alums  ;  Kaolin  ;  Starch  ;  Coloring  Materials  ; 
Fuel ;  Examination  of  Papers ;  Materials  of  a  Laboratory.  Chapt.  VIII. 
Working  Stock  of  a  Paper-mill  —  Motive  Power;  Rag  Cutters;  Dusters; 
Washing  Apparatus  ;  Boiling  Apparatus  ;  Washipg  and  Beating-engines  ; 
Apparatus  for  Bleaching  and  Draining  the  Pulp  ;  Paper-machines  ;  Finish¬ 
ing-machines  ;  General  Working  Stock  of  a  Paper-mill ;  General  Remarks 
upon  the  Establishment  of  a  Paper-mill ;  General  Remarks  in  reference  to 
Building ;  General  Considerations.  Chapt.  IX.  The  Manufacture  of  Paper 
from  Wood  in  the  United  States.  Chapt.  X.  Manufacture  of  Boards .  Chapt. 
XI.  Manufacture  of  Paper  in  China  and  Japan. 

Description  of  the  Prates. 

Regnault.  Elements  of  Chemistry. 

By  M.  Y.  Regnault.  Translated  from  the  French,  by  T. 
Forrest  Betton,  M.D.,  and  edited,  with  notes,  by  James  C. 
Booth,  M  elter  and  Refiner  U.  S.  Mint,  and  Wm.  L.  Faber, 
Metallurgist  and  Mining  Engineer.  Illustrated  by  nearly 
700  wood  engravings.  Comprising  nearly  1,500  pages.  In 

two  volumes,  8vo.,  cloth . . $10  00 

Among  the  Contents  are — Volume  I. :  French  and  English  Weights,  etc. 
Introduction— Crystallography ;  Chemical  Nomenclature ;  Metalloids  ;  Oxy¬ 
gen  ;  Hydrogen ;  Selenium ;  Tellurium ;  Chlorine  ;  Bromine ;  Iodine  ;  Fluorine : 
Phosphorus  ;  Arsenic  ;  Boren  ;  Silicum  ;  Carbon ;  On  the  Equivalents  of 
Metalloids.  Metals— Geology  ;  Physical  Properties  pf  the  Metals  ;  Chemical 

20 


PUBLISHED  BY  HENRY  CAREY  BAIRD. 


Properties  of  the  Metals.  On  Salts.  I.  Alkaline  Metals — Potassium;  So¬ 
dium  ;  Lithium  ;  Ammonia.  II.  Alkalino-Earthy  Metals — Barium ;  Stron¬ 
tium  ;  Calcium  ;  Magnesium.  III.  Earthy  Metals — Aluminum  ;  Glucinum ; 
Zirconium  ;  Thorinum  ;  Yttrium  ;  Erbium ;  Terbium ;  Cerium  ;  Lantha¬ 
num  ;  Didymium.  Chemical  Arts  Dependent  on  the  Preceding  Bodies — Gun¬ 
powder  ;  Lime  and  Mortar ;  Glass ;  Kinds  of  Glass ;  Imperfections  and 
Alterations  of  Glass ;  Pottery,  the  Paste  of  which  becomes  Compact  by 
Burning ;  Pottery,  the  Paste  of  which  remains  Porous  after  Burning ;  Or¬ 
naments  and  Painting ;  Chemical  Analysis  of  Earthenware. 

Volume  II. :  Preparation  of  Ores,  Manganese,  Iron ;  Reduction  in  the 
Blast  Furnace  ;  Chromium  ;  Cobalt ;  Nickel ;  Zinc  ;  Cadmium  ;  Tin  ;  Tita¬ 
nium  ;  Columbium ;  Niobium ;  Pelopium ;  Ilmenium  ;  Lead,  Metallurgy  of ; 
Bismuth,  Metallurgy  of ;  Antimony,  Metallurgy  of ;  Uranium  ;  Tungsten  ; 
Molybdenum  ;  Vanadium  ;  Copper,  Metallurgy  of ;  Mercury,  Metallurgy  of* 
Silver,  Metallurgy  of ;  Gold,  Metallurgy  of ;  Platinum ;  Osmium  ;  Iridium  ; 
Palladium ;  Rhodium ;  Ruthenium.  IV.  Organic  Chemistry — Introduction 
.—Ultimate  Analysis  of  Organic  Substances  ;  Construction  of  a  Formula  ; 
Analysis  of  Gases  ;  Essential  Proximate  Principles  of  Plants  ;  Acids  Exist¬ 
ing  in  Plants  ;  Organic  Alkaloids;  Neutral  Substances  in  Plants;  Nitrils  ; 
Essential  Oils  ;  Products  of  Dry  Distillation  ;  Fats  ;  Organic  Coloring  Mat- 
.ers ;  Action  of  Plants  on  the  Atmosphere ;  Animal  Chemistry  ;  Secre¬ 
tions  ;  Excretions  ;  Technical  Organic  Chemistry  ;  Manufacture  of  Bread  ; 
Brewing  ;  Cider  and  Perry ;  Wine-making ;  Beet  Sugar ;  Cane  Sugar ;  Sugar¬ 
refining;  Manufacture  of  Bone  Black ;  Soap-boiling;  Principles  of  Dyeing ; 
Mordants  ;  Calico-printing ;  Tanning ;  Charring  Wood  and  Coal ;  Manufac¬ 
ture  of  Illuminating  Gas. 

Sellers.  The  Color  Mixer: 

Containing  nearly  Four  Hundred  Receipts  for  Colors,  Pastes, 
Acids,  Pulps,  Blue  Vats,  Liquors,  etc.,  etc.,  for  Cotton  and 
W oollen  Goods  :  including  the  celebrated  Barrow  Delaine 
Colors.  By  John  Sellers,  an  experienced  practical  work¬ 
man.  In  one  volume,  l$mo. . . $2.50 

Shunk.  A  Practical  Treatise  on  Railway 
Curves  and  Location,  for  Young  Engi¬ 
neers. 


By  Wm.  F.  Shunk,  Civil  Engineer.  12mo . $1.50 

Smith.  The  Dyer’s  Instructor: 

Comprising  Practical  Instructions  in  the  Art  of  Dyeing  Silk, 
Cotton,  Wool  and  Worsted,  and  Woollen  Goods:  containing 
nearly  800  Receipts.  To  which  is  added  a  Treatise  on  the 
Art  of  Padding ;  and  the  Printing  of  Silk  Warps,  Skeins, 
and  Handkerchiefs,  and  the  various  Mordants  and  Colors  for 
the  different  styles  of  such  work.  By  David  Smith,  Pattern 
Dyer.  12mo.,  cloth . . . .  . $3.00 

ICl*  This  is  by  far  the  most  valuable  book  of  Practical  Receipts  for 
Dyers  ever  published  in  this  country— has  been  eminently  popular,  and  the 
third  edition  is  just  now  ready  for  delivery. 


Strength  and  other  Properties  of  Metals. 

Reports  of  Experiments  on  the  Strength  and  other  Pro¬ 
perties  of  Metals  for  Cannon.  With  a  Description  of  the 
Machines  for  testing  Metals,  and  of  the  Classification  of 


Zl 


PRACTICAL  AUD  SCIENTIFIC  BOOKS, 


Cannon  in  service.  By  Officers  of  the  Ordnance  Department 
U.  S.  Army.  By  authority  of  the  Secretary  of  War.  Illus¬ 
trated  by  25  large  steel  plates.  In  1  vol.,  quarto.  ....  $10.00 

Tlie  best  treatise  on  cast-iron  extant. 

Tables  Showing  the  Weight  of  Round, 
Square,  and  Flat  Bar  Iron,  Steel,  etc., 

By  Measurement.  Cloth  . . . . 63 

Taylor.  Statistics  of  Coal : 

Including  Mineral  Bituminous  Substances  employed  in  Arts 
and  Manufactures ;  with  their  Geographical,  Geological,  and 
Commercial  Distribution  and  amount  of  Production  and 
Consumption  on  the  American  Continent.  With  Incidental 
Statistics  of  the  Iron  Manufacture.  By  R.  C.  Taylor.  Second 
edition,  revised  by  S.  S.  Haldeman.  Illustrated  by  five  Maps 
and  many  Wood  engravings.  8vo.  cloth . $6.00 

Templeton.  The  Practical  Exaxninator  on 
Steam  and  the  Steam-engine : 

VVith  Instructive  References  relative  thereto,  arr'anged  for 
the  use  of  Engineers,  Students,  and  others.  By  Wm.  Tem¬ 
pleton,  Engineer.  12mo . $1.25 

This  work  was  originally  written  for  the  author’s  private  use.  He  was 
prevailed  upon  by  various  Engineers,  who  had  seen  the  notes,  to  consent  to 
its  publication,  from  their  eager  expression  of  belief  that  it  would  be 
equally  useful  to  them  as  it  had  been  to  himself. 

Turnbull.  The  Electro-Magnetic  Telegraph : 

With  an  Historical  Account  of  its  Rise,  Progress,  and  Pre¬ 
sent  Condition.  Also,  Practical  Suggestions  in  regard  to 
Insulation  and  Protection  from  the  Effects  of  Lightning. 
Together  with  an  Appendix,  containing  several  important 
Telegraphic  Devices  and  Laws.  By  Lawrence  Turnbull, 
M.  D.,  Lecturer  on  Technical  Chemistry  at  the  Franklin  In¬ 
stitute.  Second  edition.  Revised  and  improved.  Illustrated 
by  numerous  engravings.  8vo . $2.50 

Turner’s  (The)  Companion : 

Containing  Instruction  in  Concentric,  Elliptic,  and  Eccentric 
Turning ;  also,  various  Steel  Plates  of  Chucks,  Tools,  and 
Instruments  ;  and  Directions  for  Using  the  Eccentric  Cutter, 
Drill,  Vertical  Cutter  and  Rest;  with  Patterns  and  Instruc¬ 
tions  for  working  them.  12mo.,  cloth . $1.50 

Ulrich.  Dussauce.  A  Complete  Treatise  on 
the  Art  of  Dyeing  Cotton  and  Wool, 

As  practiced  in  Paris,  Rouen,  Mulhausen,  and  Germany. 
From  the  French  of  M.  Louis  Ulrich,  a  Practical  Dyer  in 

n 


PUBLISHED  BY  HENRY  CAREY  BAIRD. 


the  principal  Manufactories  of  Paris,  Rouen,  Mulhausen. 
etc.,  etc.  ;  to  which  are  added  the  most  important  Receipts 
for  Dyeing  Wool,  as  practiced  in  the  Manufacture  Imperial  e 
des  Gobelins,  Paris.  By  Prof.  H.  Dussauce.  12mo...$3.00 

Watson.  Modern  Practice  of  American  Ma¬ 
chinists  and  Engineers : 

Including  the  Construction,  Application  and  Use  of  Drills, 
Lathe  Tools,  Cutters  for  Boring  Cylinders  and  Hollow 
Ware  generally,  with  the  most  economical  speed  for  the 
same ;  the  results  verified  by  Actual  Practice  at  the  Lathe, 
the  Vice,  and  on  the  Floor.  Together  with  Workshop 
Management,  Economy  of  Manufactures,  the  Steam-engine, 
Boilers,  Ge'ars,  Belting,  etc.,  etc.  By  Egbert  P.  Watson, 
late  editor  of  the  “  Scientific  American.”  Illustrated  with 
Eighty-six  Engravings.  In  1  volume,  12mo . $2.50 

CONTENTS. 

Part  1. — The  Drill  and  its  Office. 

Part  2. — Lathe  Work. 

Part  3. — Miscellaneous  Tools  and  Processes. 

Part  4. — Steam  and  Steam-engine. 

Part  5. — Gears,  Belting,  and  Miscellaneous  Practical 
Information. 

Watson.  The  Theory  and  Practice  of  the 
Art  of  Weaving  hy  Hand  and  Power : 

With  Calculations  and  Tables  for  the  use  of  those  connected 
with  the  Trade.  By  John  Watson,  Manufacturer  and  Prac¬ 
tical  Machine  Maker.  Illustrated  by  large  drawings  of  the 
best  Power-Looms.  8vo . . . . . $5.00 

Weatherly.  Treatise  on  the  Art  of  Boiling 
Sugar,  Crystallizing,  Lozenge-making,  Com¬ 
fits,  Gum  Goods, 

And  other  processes  for  Confectionery,  etc.,  in  which  are 
explained,  in  an  easy  and  familiar  manner,  the  various 
methods  of  manufacturing  every  description  of  raw  and 
refined  Sugar  goods,  as  sold  by  Confectioners  and  others. 
12mo . $2.00 

Williams.  On  Heat  and  Steam : 

Embracing  New  Views  of  Vaporization,  Condensation,  and 
Expansion.  By  Charles  Wye  Williams,  author  of  a  Treatise 
on  the  Cumbustion  of  Coal  Chemically  and  Practically 
Considered.  With  Illustrations.  8vo . $3.50 


23 


PRACTICAL  AND  SCIENTIFIC  BOOKS, 


Bullock.  The  American  Cottage  Builder : 

A  Series  of  Designs,  Plans,  and  Specifications,  from  $200  to 
$20,000,  for  Homes  for  the  People  ;  together  with  Warming, 
"Ventilation,  Drainage,  Painting,  and  Landscape  Gardening. 
By  #ohn  Bullock,  Architect,  Civil  Engineer,  Mechanician, 
and  Editor  of  “  The  Rudiments  of  Architecture  and  Build¬ 
ing,”  etc.,  etc.  Illustrated  by  75  engravings.  In  one  vol., 
8 vo.  . . . . .  .$3.50 

Contents.— Chap.  I. — Generally— Where  to  Build  a  Cottage ;  Bird  Cot¬ 
tage  ;  Objects  Desired.  II. — The  Various  Parts — Walls  ;  Cob  Walls  ;  Mud 
Walls  ;  Silverlocks’  Hollow  Walls  ;  Dearnes’  Hollow  Brick  Wall ;  Lou¬ 
don’s  Hollow  Brick  Walls  ;  Flint  Built  Walls  ;  Walls  of  Framed  Timber, 
Rubble,  and  Plaster ;  Walls  of  Hollow  Bricks  ;  Covering  for  External  Walls  ; 
.Inside  Work  ;  Floors  ;  Lime-ash  Floors  ;  Concrete  Floors  ;  Plaster  Floor  ; 
Asphalte  ;  Floor  of  Hollow  Pots  ;  Tile  Floor  ;  Floors  of  Arched  Brickwork 
in  Mortar  ;  Fire-proof  Floor  ;  Tile-trimmer  ;  Girder  Floor ;  Stairs  formed 
of  Tile  ;  Roofs  ;  Thatch  ;  Tile  for  Roofing  ;  Slate  Roof ;  Cast-iron  Roofing  ; 
Eaves-gutter ;  Chimney-shaft;  Ventilation  and  Warming.  III.— Terra  del 
Fuego  Cottage .  IV. — Prairie  Cottage — Cottage  of  Unburnt  Brick— Plan  ;  Cross 
Section  ;  Side  View ;  Manner  of  Laying  the  Brick  and  the  Foundation  ; 
Chimney-cap,  Perspective,  and  Top  Views.  V. — The  Farm  Cottage— Ground 
Floor  ;  Attic  Floor.  VI. — The  Village  Cottage.  VII. — Italian  Cottage.  VIII. 
Thatched  Cottage.  IX. — Cottage  of  the  Society  for  Improving  the  Condition  of  the 
Poor.  X. — Warming  and  Ventilation — Ventilation.  XI. — Model  Cottage — 
Hollow  Brick  Work.  XII. — Rural  Cottage — Basement  Plan  ;  Plan  of  the  First 
Floor  ;  Plan  of  the  Second  Floor.  XIII. — Octagon  Cottage — Plan  of  Base¬ 
ment  ;  Plan  of  Principal  Story.  HTV .—Drainage.  XV.— Rural  Homes— Cir¬ 
cumstances  to  be  taken  into  consideration  in  the  Choice  of  a  Situation  ; 
Elevation  ;  The  character  of  the  Surface  on  which  to  Build  ;  Aspect ;  Soi* 
and  Subsoil ;  Water ;  Villa  ;  Rural  Home,  No.  1 ;  Views  of  a  Suburban  Resi¬ 
dence  in  the  English  style  ;  Rural  Home,  No.  2  ;  Rural  Home,  No.  3;  Rural 
Home,  No,  4.  XVI. — Paint  and  Color.  XVII. — Suburban  Residences — Gothic 
Suburban  Cottage  of  C.  Prescott,  Esq.,  Troy,  N.  Y. ;  Basement ;  First  Floor  ; 
Attic;  Second  Floor;  Suburban  Octagonal  Cottage.  XVIII — Landscape 
Gardening — First  steps  in  Forming  a  Landscape  Garden ;  The  Roads  and 
Paths  ;  Trees,  Shrubs,  and  Planting;  Hills  and  Mounds  ;  Valleys  and  Low 
Grounds  ;  Rock-work  ;  Of  Water,  and  its  Appropriation  or  Adoption  ;  Foun¬ 
tains  ;  General  Observations  ;  Formal  Gardening  ;  Pleasure  Grounds  and 
Flower  Gardens  ;  The  Flower  Garden ;  The  Greenhouse ;  The  Conserva¬ 
tory.  XIX. — Cost— The  Terra  del  Fuegan  Cottage  ;  The  Prairie  Cottage ; 
The  Village  Cottage  ;  The  Italian  Cottage ;  The  Thatched  Cottage ;  The 
Cottage  of  the  Society  for  Improving  the  Condition  of  the  Poor ;  Prince 
Albert’s  Model  Cottage  ;  The  Rural  Cottage  ;  Mr.  Fowler’s  Octagonal  Cot¬ 
tage  ;  Rural  Home,  No.  1 ;  Rural  Home,  No.  2  ;  Rural  Home,  No.  3 ;  The 
Suburban  Residence ;  The  Octagonal  Suburban  Residence  designed  by 
Wilcox  ;  The  Byzantine  Cottage  ;  The  Gothic  Suburban  Residence  designed 
by  Mr.  Davis.  XX. — Two  Residences— The  Byzantine  Cottage:  Ground 
Plan ;  Plan  of  Second  Story ;  The  Gothic  Suburban  Residence  of  W.  H.  C. 
Waddell,  Esq.,  N.  Y. ;  First  Floor;  Second  Floor.  XXI,— Artist’s  and  Arti¬ 
san's  Calling. 

Smeaton.  Builder’s  Pocket  Companion : 

Containing  the  Elements  of  Building,  Surveying,  and  Archi¬ 
tecture  ;  with  Practical  Rules  and  Instructions  connected 
with  the  subject.  By  A.  C.  Smeaton,  Civil  Engineer,  etc. 
In  one  volume,  12mo . . . .  . . $1.25 

Contents.— The  Builder,  Carpenter,  Joiner,  Mason,  Plasterer,  Plumber, 
Painter,  Smith,  Practical  Geometry,  Surveyor,  Cohesive  Strength  of  Bodies, 
Architect. 

24 


PUBLISHED  BY  HENRY  CAREY  BAIRD. 


A  New  Guide  to  the  Sheet-iron  and  Boiler 
Plate  Roller: 

Containing  a  Series  of  Tables  showing  the  weight  of  Slabs  and 

Piles  to  Produce  Boiler  Plates,  and  of  the  weight  of  Piles  and  the  sizes  of  Bars 
to  produce  Sheet-iron  ;  the  thickness  of  the  Bar  Gauge  in  decimals  ;  the  weight 
per  foot,  and  the  thickness  on  the  Bar  or  Wire  Gauge  of  the  fractional  parts  of 
an  inch ;  the  weight  per  sheet,  and  the  thickness  on  the  Wire  Gauge  or 
Sheet-iron  of  various  dimensions  to  weigh  112  lbs.  per  bundle  ;  and  the  conver¬ 
sion  of  Short  Weight  into  Long  Weight,  and  of  Long  Weight  into  Short.  Esti¬ 
mated  and  collected  by  G.  H.  Perkins  and  J.  G.  Stowe .  . $2.50 

Contents.— Weight  of  Slabs  to  produce  Boiler  Plates  (from  2  feet  to  9% 
feet,  Superficial  Measure,  from  )4  inch  to  1  inch  in  Thickness,  allowing  for 
Heating,  Rolling,  and  Cropping).  Weight  of  Slabs  to  produce  Boiler  Plates 
(from  10  feet  to  18  feet,  Superficial  Measure,  from  34  inch  to  1  inch  in  Thick¬ 
ness,  allowing  for  Heating,  Rolling,  and  Cropping).  Weight  of  Piles  to  pro¬ 
duce  Boiler  Plates  (from  2  feet  to  9)4  feet,  Superficial  Measure,  from  %  inch  to 

1  inch  in  Thickness,  allowing  for  Heating,  Rolling,  and  Cropping).  Weight  of 
Piles  to  produce  Boiler  Plates  (from  10  feet  to  18  feet,  Superficial  Measure, 
from  34  inch  to  1  inch  in  Thickness,  allowing  for  Heating,  Rolling,  and  Crop¬ 
ping).  Weight  of  Piles  to  produce  Sheet  Iron  (from  2  feet  to  9)4  feet,  Superfi¬ 
cial  Measure,  from  4  Wire  Gauge  to  14  Wire  Gauge,  allowing  for  Heating, 
Rolling,  and  Cropping).  Weight  of  Piles  to  produce  Sheet  Iron  (from  10  feet  to 
18  feet,  Superficial  Measure,  from  4  Wire  Gauge  to  14  Wire  Gauge,  allowing 
for  Heating,  Rolling,  and  Cropping).  Weight  of  Piles  to  produce  Sheet  Iron 
(from  2  feet  to  9)4  feet,  Superficial  measure,  from  14  Wire  Gauge  to  30  Wire 
Gauge  in  thickness,  allowing  for  Heating,  Rolling,  and  Cropping,  both  Bar 
and  Sheet).  Weight  of  Piles  to  produce  Sheet  Iron  (from  10  feet  to  18  feet, 
Superficial  Measure,  from  14  Wire  Gauge  to  30  Wire  Gauge  in  Thickness, 
allowing  for  Heating,  Rolling,  and  Cropping,  both  Bar  and  Sheet).  Sizes  of 
Bars  to  produce  Sheet  Iron  (from  2  feet  to  8  feet  long,  from  13  Wire  Gauge 
to  20  Wire  Gauge,  allowing  for  Heating,  Rolling,  and  Cropping).  Sizes  of 
Bars  to  produce  Sheet  Iron  (from  2  feet  to  8  feet  long,  from  21  Wire  Gauge 
to  30  Wire  Gauge,  allowing  for  Heating,  Rolling,  and  Cropping).  Table 
showing  the  Thickness  of  the  Bar  Gauge  in  Decimals.  Table  showing  the 
Weight  per  Foot,  and  the  Thickness  on  the  Bar  or  Wire  Gauge  of  the  Frac¬ 
tional  Parts  of  an  Inch.  Table  showing  the  Weight  per  Foot,  and  the  Thick¬ 
ness  on  the  Wire  Gauge  of  the  Fractional  Parts  of  an  Inch.  Table  showing 
the  Weight  per  Sheet,  and  the  Thickness  on  the  Wire  Gauge  of  Sheet  Iron 

2  feet  long  by  1)4  feet  wide,  from  4  Sheets  to  70  Sheets,  to  weigh  112  pounds 
per  Bundle.  Table  showing  the  Weight  per  Sheet,  and  the  Thickness  on  the 
Wire  Gauge  of  Sheet  Iron  2)4  feet  long  by  2  feet  wide,  from  2  Sheets  to  36 
Sheets,  to  weigh  112  pounds  per  Bundle.  Table  showing  the  Weight  per 
Sheet,  and  the  Thickness  on  the  Wire  Gauge  of  Sheet  Iron  4  feet  long  by  2 
feet  wide,  from  1  Sheet  to  28  Sheets,  to  weigh  112  pounds  per  Bundle.  Table 
showing  the  Weight  per  Sheet,  and  the  Thickness  on  the  Wire  Gauge  of 
Sheet  Iron  4  feet  long  by  2)4  feet  wide,  from  1  Sheet  to  23  Sheets,  to  weigh 
112  pounds  per  Bundle.  Table  showing  the  Weight  per  Sheet,  and  the  Thick¬ 
ness  on  the  Wire  Gauge  of  Sheet  Iron  4  feet  long  by  3  feet  wide,  from  1  Sheet, 
to  19  Sheets,  to  weigh  112  pounds  per  Bundle.  Table  showing  the  Weight 
per  Sheet,  and  the  Thickness  on  the  Wire  Gauge  of  Sheet  Iron  6  feet  long  by 
2  feet  wide,  from  1  Sheet  to  23  Sheets,  tb  weigh  112  pounds  per  Bundle.  Table 
showing  the  Weight  per  Sheet,  and  the  Thickness  on  the  Wire  Gauge  of  Sheet 
Iron  5  feet  long  by  2)4  feet  wide,  from  1  Sheet  to  IS  Sheets,  to  weigh  112 
pounds  per  bundle.  Table  showing  the  Weight  per  Sheet,  and  the  Thickness 
on  the  Wire  Gauge  of  Sheet  Iron  5  feet  long  by  3  feet  wide,  from  1  Sheet  to 
15  Sheets,  to  weigh  112  pounds  per  Bundle.  Table  showing  the  weight  per 
Sheet,  and  the  Thickness  on  the  Wire  Gauge  of  Sheet  Iron  6  feet  long  by  2 
feet  wide,  from  1  Sheet  to  19  Sheets,  to  weigh  112  pounds  per  Bundle.  Table 
showing  the  Weight  per  Sheet,  and  the  Thickness  on  the  Wire  Gauge  of 
Sheet  Iron  6  feet  long  by  2)4  feet  wide,  from  1  Sheet  to  15  Sheets,  to  weigh 
112  pounds  per  Bundle.  Table  showing  the  Weight  per  Sheet,  and  the 
Thickness  on  the  Wire  Gauge  of  Sheet  Iron  6  feet  long  by  3  feet  wide,  from  1 
Sheet  to  12  Sheets,  to  weigh  112  pounds  per  bundle.  Short  Weight  into  long. 
Long  Weight  into  Shoyt. 


25 


PRACTICAL  AND  SCIENTIFIC  BOOKS, 


Rural  Chemistry : 

An  Elementary  Introduction  to  the  Study  of  the  -Science  in 
its  Relation  to  Agriculture  and  the  Arts  of  Life.  By  E.  Solly, 
Hon.  Mem.  of  Agr.  Society,  England.  Large  12mo ....  $1.50 

Contents. — Introduction—  Chapt.  I.  Objects  of  Chemistry  ;  Affinity  ;  Na¬ 
ture  of  Combination  and  Decomposition ;  The  Elements  ;  The  Air,  its  Pro¬ 
perties  and  Composition  ;  Oxygen  and  Nitrogen  :  Combustion,  results  ot 
Combustion  ;  Carbonic  Acid  Gas  ;  Water,  Ice,  and  Steam  ;  Effects  of  Frost ; 
Latent  Heat ;  Composition  of  Water  ;  Hydrogen.  Chapt.  II. — Carbon,  its 
Different  Forms  ;  Cohesion  ;  Combustion  and  Decay  ;  Carbonic  Acid  Gas, 
produced  by  Respiration,  Cumbustion,  Fermentation,  etc.  ;  Nature  of  Acids 
and  Salts  ;  Carbonic  Oxide  ;  Carburetted  Hydrogen,  Fire  Damp,  Coal  Gas  ; 
Compounds  all  definite ;  Combining  Weights ;  Nitrogen  combined  with 
Hydrogen  forms  Ammonia  ;  Carbonate,  Sulphate,  Muriate,  and  Phosphate 
of  Ammonia  ;  Nitric  Acid  ;  Nitrates  ;  Sulphur,  Sulphurous  Acid  ;  Sulphuric 
Acid,  Sulphates  ;  Sulphuretted  Hydrogen ;  Chlorine,  Muriatic  Acid  ;  Iodine, 
Bromine  ;  Phosphorus,  Phosphoric  Acid.  Chapt.  III. — Metals  ;  Bases ;  Alka¬ 
lies  ;  Potash,  its  Properties  ;  Carbonate  and  Nitrate  of  Potash,  Gunpowder  ; 
Soda,  Common  Salt,  Sulphate,  Carbonate  and  Nitrate  of  Soda  ;  The  Alkaline 
Earths  ;  Lime,  its  Nature  and  Properties  ;  Carbonate,  Sulphate,  and  Phos¬ 
phate  of  Lime  ;  Magnesia,  its  Carbonate,  Sulphate,  Muriate,  and  Phosphate. 
Chapt.  IV. — The  Earths,  Alumina,  its  Properties  ;  Alum  ;  Silisia,  or  Silicic 
Acid;  Silicates  of  Potash  and  Soda  ;  Glass  ;  Silicates  in  the  Soil,  in  Plants  ; 
The  Metals,  their  Oxides  and  Salts  ;  Iron,  its  Oxides  ;  Rusting  of  Iron  ; 
Pyrites ;  Sulphate  of  Iron,  or  Green  Vitriol ;  Gold ;  Silver ;  Mercury ; 
Copper ;  Sulphate  of  Copper,  or  Blue  Vitriol ;  Zinc ;  Tin ;  Manganese  ; 
Lead  ;  Metallic  Alloys.  Chapt.  V.— Organic  Matter ;  Vegetable  Substances  ; 
Lignin,  or  Woody  Fibre  ;  Starch,  Varieties  of  Starch  ;  Gum,  Soluble  and 
Insolubles  Sugar,  Cane  and  Grape,  its  manufacture ;  Gluten,  Albumen, 
Legumine ,  Fibrin,  Gliadine ;  Chemical  Transformations  ;  Formation  oi 
Gum,  Sugar,  etc.  ;  Fermentation  ;  Lactic  Acid  ;  Manufacture  of  Wine  ;  Al¬ 
cohol  ;  Brandy  and  Grain  Spirit ;  Brewing  ;  Bread-making ;  Vinegar  or 
Acetic  Acid.  Chapt.  VI.— Vegetable  Principles ;  Vegetable  Acids  ;  Citric, 
Tartaric,  Malic,  and  Oxalic  Acids  ;•  Oils,  fixed  and  volatile,  Manufacture 
of  Soap;  Resins,  Pitch  and  Tar;  Coloring  Matters,  Dyeing;  Incifganic 
Constituents  of  Plants  ;  Animal  Matter ;  Albumen  ;.  Fibrin  ;  Caseine,  Milk, 
Butter,  and  Cheese;  Gelatine-;  Tanning,  Leather ;  Fat;  Bone;  Protein; 
Food  of  Animals  ;  Respiration  ;  Circulation  of  the  Blood  ;  Digestion  ;  For¬ 
mation  of  Fat ;  Cookery,  Roasting  and  Boiling ;  Action  of  Medicines. 
Chapt.  VII. — The  Food  of  Plants;  Substances  Derived  from  the  Air  ;  Sources 
of  Oxygen,  Hydrogen,  Nitrogen,  and  Carbon ;  Substances  Derived  from 
the  Soil ;  Sources  of  Earthy  Substances  ;  Composition  of  Soils,  their  For¬ 
mation  ;  Decomposition  of  Silicates ;  Mechanical  Structure  of  Soils ;  The 
Saline  Constituents  of  Soils  ;  Organic  Matters  in  Soils,  Humus,  Humic  Acid, 
their  use  in  Soils;  Germination,  Malting;  Moisture,  Air  and  Warmth; 
Influence  of  Light ;  Office  of  the  Leaves ;  Roots ;  Formation  of  Organic 
Matter;  Flowers,  Fruit,  Seeds;  Organic  and  Organized  Matter;  Vitality 
of  Embryo  ;  Nature  of  Seeds ;  Earthy  Substances  in  Plants ;  Effects  of 
Climate ;"  Action  of  Plants  on  the  Air.  Chapt.  VIII. — Deterioration  of 
Soils,  its 'Cause ;  Modes  of  Maintaining  the  Fertility  of  the'Soil;  Theory 
of  Fallowing  ;  Rotation  of  Crops  ;  Subsoil.  Ploughing  ;  Draining ;  Manure  ; 
Organic  Manure  ;  Animal  Manure,  contains  Nitrogen  ;  Results  of  Putrefac¬ 
tion  ;  Sulphuretted  Hydrogen  ;  Loss  of  Manure  ;  Liquid  Manure  ;  Animal 
Excrements,  Guano  ;  Modes  of  Fixing  Ammonia,  by  Acids,  by  Gypsum,  etc. ; 
Strong  Manures  ;  Wool,  Rags,  Oil ;  Bones  ;  Super-phosphate  of  Lime  ;  Veg¬ 
etable  Manures  ;  Sawdust,  Seaweed  ;  Green  Manures  ;  Irrigation  ;  Inorganic 
Manures  ;  Lime,  Chalk,  Marl,  Shell  Sand  ;  Gypsum  ;  Phosphate  of  Lime  ; 
Ashes  ;  Burnt  Clay  ;  Soot,  Charcoal ;  Gas  Liquor  ;  Potash  ;  Alkaline  Salts  ; 
Nitrates,  Common  Salt ;  Salt  and  Lime.  Chapt.  IX.— Composition  of  Par¬ 
ticular  Crops  ;  Composition  of  Wheat;  Barley;  Oats;  Rye;  Maise;  Rice; 
Buckwheat ;  Linseed  ;  Hempseed  ;  Oil-seeds  ;  Beans ;  Peas ;  Lentils ; 
Vetches;  Potatoes;  Batatas;  Jerusalem  Artichoke;  Oxalis ;  Cabbage; 
Turnips  ;  Mangel-Wurzel ;  Carrot ;  Parsnip  ;  Clover  ;  Lucern ;  Saintfoin  ; 
Composition  of  Particular  Manures  ;  Cows’  Urine  ;  Horse-durig ;  Pigs’  dung ; 
Night-soil;  Urine;  Bones  of  Oxen;  Cows;  Horses;  Pigs;  Farmyard-dung; 
Guano  ;  Wood-ashes  ;  Lixiviated  Ashes ;  Peat  Ashes  ;  Kelp.  Index. 


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